A Blank Slate
by Fan-Service V
Summary: (ON HOLD) After discovering the secret behind Him's boys, Mojo takes matters into his own hands and brings his original creations back to life! (ON HOLD)
1. Chapter 1

**Warning: STORY IS INCOMPLETE/PUT ON HOLD**

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Powerpuff girls. The source material belongs to its respective owner.**

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...

-The City of Townsville-

...

The city had been unusually quiet for about a week now. The lack of any criminals threatening the lives of the good citizens of Townsville, or giant monsters attacking the city was quickly taking its tall on the Powerpuff girls, who were struggling to keep themselves entertained in any way around the house.

"Man, this is so boring!" Buttercup said flipping endlessly through channels "Why is nobody attacking Townsville!"

"I know what you mean Buttercup" Blossom said, reading one of her countless books. "I mean, it was refreshing at first, not having to worry about keeping the city safe, but now it's just dull"

"Do you think the mayor needs help with his pickle jar?" Bubbles said, drawing a picture of a blue cat.

The hotline rang.

"**I'll GET IT!**" three of them said in unison, practically fighting over the phone.

"Yes mayor?" Blossom finally answered. "The bank is being robbed? We'll be there as soon as possible!"

"Girls the bank is..." She turned around only to find out that her sisters already left. Soon enough she joined them.

...

Moments later the girls burst through the ceiling of the bank, getting ready to fight crime for the first time in quite a while.

"Not so fast you!.." The girls said, but were surprised to discover that the place was completely empty.

"Hey, what gives?!" said Blossom "Where is everybody?"

"Oh Sissy-puffs!" Three voices were heard from above.

"The Rowdyruff boys!" The girls shouted.

The boys were seen just above the hole that the girls made getting in. They were preparing to finish the girls off with a collaborated attack, concentrating their energy into a large turquoise-colored ball.

The girls gasped when they realized what the boys were planning. Huge smirks were seen on the boys' faces.

"So Powder-puffs, any last words?" Brick said, confident that they were going to win this time.

"Oh no, the boys tricked us!" panicked Bubbles

"The blast will hit us no matter where we are" said Blossom

"I can't believe those ugly, stupid boys are going to beat us this time" Buttercup shouted

"**Hey who ya' calling ugly and stupid, Butt-face!**" Butch raged, forgetting completely about the energy ball and flew towards Buttercup

"BUTCH YOU IDIOT!" Brick yelled as The energy ball quickly began shaking and blew up on the other two ruffs, leaving them severely injured.

After recovering from the blast, Brick gritted his teeth, "BUTCH!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.

Butch stopped midway and quickly flew back to Brick, "Whoops, sorry dude" he said sheepishly, with his hand behind his head.

"SORRY!?" Brick nearly lost his voice, "This was the perfect plan to beat those stupid sissies and you had to mess it all up!"

"Oh yeah!?" Butch said, quickly losing his temper "Well it was a stupid plan to begin with and it wouldn't have worked!"

"I wanna see you come up with anything better numb-skull!" retaliated "Heck even Boomer wouldn't have done something this stupid!"

"Hey!" Boomer said defensively.

"SHUT UP!" Both brothers shouted at the blue ruff.

"Maybe you just suck as a leader!" Butch said.

"Take it back Butch!" Brick yelled, Clearly that last part got to him.

"Make me!" Butch said with a smirk on his lips.

Soon enough the two Ruffs began grappling each other on the floor of the bank still shouting at one another, forgetting about their targets. The Powerpuff girls were looking at the two boys, bewildered, while Boomer was distracted by a passing plane in the sky.

The girls watched as the boys continued fighting, gave each other confused looks, shrugged and left the scene of the crime.

...

Meanwhile

...

Unbeknownst to both the boys and the girls, Mojo was observing the short-lived fight between the two groups. A small robotic device was hovering above the bank, displaying the fight on a monitor in Mojo's lair.

"There's something odd about those boys..." Mojo said, meticulously looking at the screen. "hmm..."

"**How did he..**." Suddenly a thought entered Mojo's head.

Mojo quickly sprinted towards the phone, quickly dialing a number "Hello... yes, we need to talk..."

...

The Powerpuff girls just returned home after the encounter with the boys.

"I swear those boys will never learn" Blossom said with a self-satisfied look on her face.

"Yeah, did you see how that Butch charged at me, forgetting about their energy-ball thingie?" Buttercup said.

"But they could have beaten us this time" Bubbles worried.

"Oh don't worry Bubbles. The boys might be strong but they're too reckless to win against us" Blossom reassured

"Yeah Bubbles, they're too stupid to ever carry out their plans", Buttercup said mockingly.

"I guess you're right. I just hope they don't cause too much trouble" Bubbles said..

Just below Townsville volcano Mojo awaited someones arrival, impatiently looking at his wristwatch "Where is that good for nothing freak..."

Just then a devil-like figure appeared, emerging from a dark-red fog in front of Mojo.

"Hello Mojo" said HIM in his usual cunning voice.

"What took you so long, you damn lobster!" Mojo lashed out.

"What was that, you baboon!" HIM raged, revealing his lower demonic voice.

"**WHAT! How dare you SUGGEST! IMPLY! SIGNIFY! that I, Mojo Jojo, am a baboon, when in fact I, Mojo Jojo, ****am, clearly a CHIMPANZEE! I REPEAT, I REITERATE, I RESTATE, I am a CHIMPANZEE, not a BABOO**..."

"Get to the point Mojo!" HIM yelled.

"Well, yes" Mojo regained composure "see I was wondering, how exactly did you recreate my boys?"

"And why should I tell you?" HIM said, smirking.

"Ohh, I just wanted to understand how you made them superior to my original creations, that's all" Mojo said with a hint of sarcasm.

"Oh well, I suppose it couldn't hurt" HIM said "You see, being as sick as I was with those miserable brats, and with incompetent fools such as yourself, I've decided to bring back the only REAL threats to the Powerpuff girls.

"Of course the only reason why the boys were destroyed in the first place was because the girls used their filthy kisses on them. Luckily I took care of that problem by giving the boys a cootie vaccination."

"Yes, but how did recreate them?" Mojo was curious at that point.

"Ahh, yes that's the brilliant part!" HIM grinned "See, I couldn't find the ingredients that you used to create those little boys so I did something else", him said, his grin widening.

"What?" Mojo asked.

"Well, being the omnipresent being that I am, I watched the boys since the moment you created them until their inevitable destruction (referring to the many TV screens at his place). I've decided then, to make the boys from scratch using my wonderful powers.

"What do you mean from "scratch"?"

"You see Mojo, your boys aren't exactly your boys" HIM continued "They are living fragments of my imagination"

Mojo was silent.

"I created the boys, or rather the image of the boys based on what I've seen of them, when you first made them" HIM explained "Of course those brief observations couldn't possibly have given me the full picture about the boys, so I had to make up some things on my own."

"Like what?"

"Ohh certain aspects of their personalities, their powers, motivations and so forth..." HIM said casually. "Also, I used the opportunity to make the boys more ruthless and lethal than your boys could ever have hoped to be" HIM was clearly satisfied with himself.

'Of course. It's all starting to make sense!' Mojo thought.

Mojo's mind was racing, as he was trying to process everything HIM told him.

"Mojo?" HIM said, tapping Mojo's shoulder.

...

"**MOJO!**" HIM yelled.

"WHAT?" Mojo immediately snapped out of his thoughts, as he realized HIM was calling him.

"Is that all?" HIM asked, frowning.

"Ohh, yes, you may leave" Mojo quickly said.

And as quickly as he showed up, HIM disappeared, leaving Mojo to his thoughts.

'It all makes perfect sense now!' Mojo thought to himself 'HIM completely overestimated his own powers. Not only that but he neglected to realize what made the boys so powerful in the first place!'

"This is perfect!" Mojo proclaimed "Now I just need to make the necessary preparations, and soon I will take over Townsville and destroy those accursed Powerpuff girls!"

"**MUWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA**!"

Mojo slowly began realizing that his intentions were clearly heard throughout the park, as a crowd gathered around him, giving him puzzled looks.

Mojo blankly stared at the crowd, before drawing a sizable laser gun from his small pocket. "**WHAT ARE YOU ****LOOKING AT**!" he yelled while frantically shooting at the scattering crowd

'Stupid humans'

...

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...

**Thanks for reading. This is my first fanfic so any feedback (both positive and negative) is greatly appreciated.**

**I'll update as soon as I can. :-)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Alrighty then, chapter 2!**

**Hope you enjoy! :)**

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-**Mojo's lab**-

'HIM you miserable fool...'

Mojo walked towards an old bookcase in a secluded corner of his lab. He was still deep in thought from what he had heard from HIM, though a smirk on his face could be seen this time. "Now where did I put that book?" Mojo said as he picked out a handful of books from the middle shelf .

"**Aha**!" Mojo exclaimed, retrieving a dusty blue book with the title "Mojo's Book of Culinary Delights" on the cover.

Mojo quickly flipped through the pages, until he reached a small gap with a dial pad conveniently embedded into it. He instinctively looked around to see that nobody was watching and dialed a secret code.

The bookcase slowly began descending into the floor before Mojo's very eyes, "You've made a very careless mistake, HIM" Mojo grinned.

Shortly, the bookcase disappeared entirely and in its place was a relatively big vault, with yet another dial-pad Mojo once again entered a secret code and opened the vault. Inside were 3 medium-sized containers with a black liquid substance labeled 'X'.

Mojo gazed at the containers "While your creations are indisputably more ruthless and more impulsive, they are merely a shell of my original, superior boys!" Mojo said "My boys were reserved! They worked as a team! THEY USED THEIR BRAINS FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!"

"HIM clearly compromised all of that, believing his powers were more effective than Chemical X"

"Now for the main ingredients" Mojo opened a small chest, which had the original ingredients contained in a glass jar, "Time for you to return to your old father, children.." Mojo could barely contain his wide grin.

"**MUWAHAHAHAHA**!"

...

-**Meanwhile at Fuzzy's cabin**-

...

Boomer had been playing 'messenger' for both his brothers for over a day. Both supposedly refusing to talk to one another after Butch foiled Bricks plan to destroy the Powerpuff girls.

"Boomer!" Brick called.

"What?" Said a frustrated Boomer.

"Go steal me a Coca Cola six-pack!" Brick ordered "**AND MAKE IT QUICK**!"

Boomer let out a sigh, too tired to argue by this point. He decided to comply and began walking away.

"Hey pea-brain, aint' ya forgetting something?" Brick yelled.

Boomer stopped in his tracks "What?"

"Ask Butch if he wants something!" Brick said.

"Ask em` yourself!" Boomer cried.

"I'm not talking to him, stupid!"

"But why do you care if...?"

"**NOW**!"

"Okay, Okay" Boomer said.

Boomer turned to Butch who was glaring at him.

"Butch do you wa..."

"**ROOT BEER**!" Butch didn't let him finish.

Boomer gave him an annoyed look.

"**NOW!**"

Boomer quickly flew out of the house, both to retrieve the goods and to get away from his patronizing brothers.

Once Boomer was gone, the boys could no longer contain themselves. Both Brick and Butch fell on the floor, laughing hysterically at the gullibility of their own brother.

"**Hahahahaha**..." Brick laughed "Did... did you see the look on his.. face!" Brick said between bouts of laughter.

"**Yeah, Hahahahahaha**..!", Butch was almost choking "What an idiot! hahahaha...!"

"Do you think he's ever going to find out?" Brick said.

The boys gave each other serious looks.

"**BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!**"

"We cool, Brick?"

"Yeah, bro."

...

Boomer was flying almost at a walking pace towards a small retail store, while mumbling to himself "Stupid Brick and Butch! Why do I always have to get them their stuff". Suddenly Boomer heard a rather familiar voice.

"Okay Octi, we should probably head home before the professor starts to worry".

Boomer watched as Bubbles was talking to her toy octopus in the main park.

'it's that Bubble girl!' Boomer thought 'Wait a minute she's alone? Ha! Wait til' I see the look on their faces when I tell em` I beat a Powerpuff girl all by myself!'

Being as excited as he was at the sudden opportunity, Boomer charged at Bubbles without much thought. Bubbles quickly noticed Boomer (The Rowdyruff boys aren't exactly known for making low- profile entries) and avoided his attack.

"Hey!" Bubbles said, surprised by the sudden attack "What's the big idea!?"

"What's it look like?" Boomer snapped "I'm here to beat you, Powerpuff!"

"Well sorry but it's getting dark and I need to get home before I'm in trouble" Bubbles said.

"Oh yeah?!" Boomer was admittedly a bit taken aback by this "Well guess what? You're already in big trouble, wuss!"

"Look we'll fight tomorrow with my sisters and your brothers, okay?"

Suddenly Boomer got an Idea "Well if you ain't gonna fight me" Boomer smirked.

He immediately snatched Bubbles' toy octopus from the ground and flew off "Guess you'll go home with out your toy!" He yelled flying as fast as he can.

...

He was surprised to find out that Bubbles wasn't chasing after him. Seconds later Boomer appeared in front of Fuzzy's cabin, where his brothers were waiting for him.

Boomer looked at the toy-octopus that he took from Bubbles "Now what the heck am I supposed to do with you" Examining it for a bit, he shrugged his shoulders and went into the cabin.

"Hey guys" Boomer said.

The boys haven't been preoccupied with anything important while Boomer was gone. Brick and Butch were watching the TV that the boys stole after settling in (they were perplexed as to how anyone could possibly live in a place like this without a hint of technology).

"What took ya so long, bonehead!" Butch asked.

"Yeah, don't tell me you lost your way to the store" Brick mocked.

Boomer finally realized that he forgot about the drinks that he was supposed to get.

Brick finally got up from the couch and approached Boomer "Well, where is it?

...**and what the hell is that?**" Brick pointed at Octi.

"Well... Uh.. you see... this Powerpuff girl..." Boomer stuttered.

"Ha! His girlfriend gave it to him!" Butch teased Boomer. "Ewww, gross. She's not my girlfriend!" Boomer protested

"BOOMER AND A POWERPUFF SITTING IN A TREE! K.I.S.S.I.N..

"Butch, shut up!" Brick ordered.

"Now. What was that about the Powerpuff girls?" Brick asked.

"Well, I was going to the store to buy your stuff, when I noticed that blue puff playing with her doll" He showed the doll "I wanted to attack her but she chickened out like a sissy so..."

"Wait! She was alone?" Brick asked, surprised.

"Yeah well..."

"THAT'S IT!" Brick yelled, as an Idea entered his head.

"**WHAT!**?" Boomer and Butch asked in unison.

"Boys, tomorrow we're gonna beat those Powerpuff girls!"

...

-Meanwhile in Mojo's lab-

...

"Excellent!" Mojo said stirring a pot full of chemical X "This time I have used the real deal, pure, potent and more importantly, STABLE chemical X"

The chemical was frothing at that point, with fumes emitting from the bowl.

"It's time to put in the ingredients" Mojo said "It's a good thing I, Mojo Jojo was smart enough to preserve them after those damned Powerpuff girls defeated them".

"But now...", Mojo said while putting snips, a pair of snails and a puppy dog tail into the mix "**I WILL BE ****UNSTOPPABLE**!"

The fumes were spreading rapidly across the lab and the pot was shaking. Soon enough the chemical reaction triggered a large explosion sending Mojo flying into a wall.

Mojo was coughing as the fumes slowly began fading away. After finally managing to open his eyes, a large smirk appeared on his face.

"Excellent..."

.


	3. Chapter 3

**Well here's chapter three. It's a bit longer than the first two, and _probably_ more coherent (probably). **

**Let me know if it's readable. :D**

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...

**-Mojo's Lab- **

...

As soon as the fumes cleared up, Mojo was finally able to witness the results. The three Rowdyruff boys stood before him, with a glare on their faces.

"Boys!" Mojo quickly ran towards the boys to hug them.

The boys, of course, weren't fond of such gestures and their eyes began glowing red, ready to blast Mojo. "Don't even think about it," Brick said.

Mojo backed off. "Boys, it's so good to see you return," Mojo said. "Now we can finally wreak havoc on this rotten city, together!"

"Woah! Woah! Hold on there, Mojo" Brick said, waving his hands in confusion. "What happened to us?"

"Yeah, One minute those girls are acting all girly and cutesy, and the next—I don't remember..." Butch said, scratching the back-side of his head.

"They kissed us, and then, nothing..." Brick felt his cheek, flinching slightly.

Mojo then explained what happened to the Rowdyruff boys, describing the events shortly before and after their destruction.

"So not only did you make us in some prison toilet," Butch cringed at the thought, "You used some two-bit chemical, instead of the real deal?!"

Mojo hung his head, "yes..." he said, quietly.

"And it never entered your brain that it could somehow backfire?" Butch said, giving Mojo a deadly glare.

"**no...**"

"Right..." Butch began walking towards Mojo, cracking his knuckles.

"Butch, don't." Brick ordered, "Mojo's maybe an idiot for what he did.

"But he did bring us back; the least we could do is not clobber him to death" Brick said, much to Mojo's relief."

The boys looked exactly as they did when Mojo first created them. The only noticeable difference were the boys' voices which were slightly higher-pitched and less gruff-sounding. Of course more changes would soon be revealed.

"Now as for you..." Brick pointed at Mojo, "Are you positive the girls' kisses have no affect on us anymore?"

"Yes." Mojo explained, "I've used genuine chemical X this time; The same one that was used to create your counter- parts—It is most-stable and potent, so you shouldn't react to their kisses the way you did."

"Good..." Brick flew towards Mojo and grabbed him by his throat. "Cause' if we do, then I swear I'll _personally_ come back and kill you"

"Yeah!—**wait what**?!" Butch said, confused.

"Promise me that won't happen, Mojo!" Brick said, still squeezing Mojo's neck.

Mojo struggled to breathe, let alone form a coherent sentence, "p...pr...p.."

Brick loosened his grip, slightly.

"_p-promise..." _Mojo's voice was barely audible.

Brick finally let him go, forcing Mojo to cough for a while.

"Sorry Mojo just had to make sure." Brick said. _Wait...why did I bother to apologize!?_

Mojo, too, was mildly surprised, but he simply let the matter pass. "Now boys, it's late, so you'll have to wait until tomorrow to attack the girls," Mojo said "Now, I'm going to sleep and I—"

**"HEY MOJO, WHERE DO YOU KEEP THE FOOD!"**

Mojo realized the boys were no longer listening to him, and were instead distroying the kitchen, in search for food (which was especially hard since Mojo didn't like to leave left-overs.)

_Those boys will be the end of me..._

...

-**The Next Day**-

...

The girls were having quite a day at Pokey Oak's Kindergarten—Between lessons Blossom had to comfort Bubbles, who was still sad over the loss of her toy. Buttercup, meanwhile, got an F on a math test—which made her angry.

"...Well Buttercup if you had studied for the test, you could have fared better," Blossom said, going in through the door.

"I studied for 3 days," Buttercup said, "Besides, not everybody can study for weeks on end, **Blossom**!" Buttercup pointed at the **A+ **on Blossom's sheet.

.

"I study for as much as necessary" Blossom said, triumphantly crossing her arms.

"Octi..." Bubbles said, her eyes locked on the floor.

"Jeez Bubbles, it's just a toy—get over it!" Buttercup pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration,

Bubbles gave buttercup an angry look, before grabbing her by her dress, "**And what if somebody took your boxing gloves or your action figures! **

**Would you be happy then—Ha?!" **she yelled, before letting her go.

Bubbles, then, burst into tears, and ran towards their room, slamming the door behind her.

"Sheesh, what's gotten into her" Buttercup glanced at Blossom.

"Buttercup, that was very mean of you!" Blossoms said, crossing her arms, "You know she's very attached to that toy!"

"**It's not my fault she's a big baby**!"

"Buttercup, go apologize to Bubbles, right now." Blossom emphasized each word.

"Okay, Okay I'll go..." Buttercup said.

Buttercup slowly approached the door to her room. Bubbles' crying was heard quite clearly from outside, so Buttercup decided against knocking on the door, and simply walked in.

"Bubbles?..." Buttercup said, looking uncomfortably at her sister.

Bubbles was simply sitting on the bed, using the sheets to wipe her eyes.

"Buttercup, I'm sorry for yelling at you like that, I—" Bubbles started.

"No Bubbles.." Buttercup said, coming closer to Bubbles, "I'm sorry for snapping at you like that, I know how much you love Octi..."

Bubbles ceased her crying after a short time.

The two sisters stared at each other, silent for a moment. Both, then, smiled and warmly hugged each other. "Thank you Buttercup."

-Hotline rings-

"**I'll get it**!**" **Blossom burst into the room before Bubbles or Buttercup could even react.

"Yes Mayor?" Blossom said, "... A monster is attacking the city?... We're on it!"

"Girls the—" Blossom was once again abandoned by her sisters.

_This is seriously getting old..._

...

The Powerpuff girls flew towards Townsville, seeing the Monster from miles away.

"Whoah.. He's a big one!" Buttercup said, as they came closer and closer.

The Monster resembled a giant praying mantis with razor-sharp forearms, capable of slicing through buildings. The people already evacuated the area, and the monster-mantis was left to destroy nearby buildings

"Alright girls, time to give this insect the boot!" Blossom said.

The girls charged towards the monster—Buttercup tried to hit the monster from above, aiming for its head. This did nothing, and instead Buttercup only hurt her wrist.

Blossom used her ice breathe to freeze the monster in its tracks, but the monster broke the ice with a slight motion of its body.

Bubbles attempted to use her sonic scream but this, too, did not faze the monster, in the slightest.

"We need a better plan, leader-girl!" Buttercup said, holding her wrist in pain. "its skin is as tough as diamonds."

"Right," Blossom said, "Girls, heat vision!"

The girls flew up, facing the monster. Their eyes began glowing as they zapped it as fast as they could—To their surprise the monster seemed to be affected by the attack, but it appeared to be more annoyed, than hurt by it. It began swinging its fore-arms, attempting to hit the girls with its sharp blades.

The girls backed off. "Great. Now what?" Buttercup said.

Blossom thought for a moment—an idea entered her head, "Girls, head towards the street!"

"What? Why?..." Buttercup asked.

"Trust me, Buttercup" Blossom smiled at her.

The girls landed on the concrete road, so only the monster's legs were visible to them.

"Now we need to distract it, so that it'll attack us." Blossom said.

"Oh okay—"

**WHAT!?**

"Trust me, it'll work!"

"Fine..." Buttercup said, "**HEY YOU STUPID GREEN ANT THING! GET DOWN HERE SO I CAN STEP ON YOU!**—

"Not like that, Buttercup!" Blossom slapped her own forehead, "I mean with our lasers!"

"Oh, right..." Buttercup said, smiling embarrassingly.

The girls began firing their lasers at the monster's legs. Soon enough the monster gave the girls its full attention, slowly lifting its forearms, ready to strike the girls below.

"Get ready girls!" Blossom ordered.

The monster's arms came down on the Powerpuff girls.

"**Girls scatter**!"

The girls quickly flew in separate directions. The monster's sharp forearms hit the concrete, and got stuck deep inside.

"Great!" Buttercup said, "Now what?"

"Keep firing!"

The girls continued their barrage of laser beams, which forced the monster to struggle to get its hands out from the ground.

"Go for the head!" Blossom said, as they flew up and began firing at the monster's head.

After a while of intense struggling, the monster finally gave out. It collapsed to the ground with its forearms still firmly fixed inside the concrete.

"Yahoo!" Buttercup yelled, jumping up and down. "That was brilliant Blossom!"

"Yeah Blossom, you were great." Bubbles gave Blossom as soft smile.

"Thank you girls" Blossom said, "of course one shouldn't expect any less from a leader as smart, beautiful and bril—

Blossom realized she was letting the praise get to her head, as her sisters gave her a sour look. "Sorry..."

"I guess that's done" Bubbles said, slightly panting.

"Yeah, that was a tough one" Buttercup said, "Heck if it wasn't for Bloss—", she stopped, not wanting to feed Blossom's already inflated ego

"I think we can finally call it a day" Blossom said.

"Let's go home girls."

...

-Meanwhile-

...

The Rowdyruff Boys were watching the girls as they were fighting the giant monster. The boys were standing on top a tall skyscraper so they can catch a full view of the fight.

"Well guys I hate to admit it, but that sissy-puff, Blossom sure knows how to get out of a messy situation," Brick said,

The boys watched as the girls used their heat vision to defeat the monster.

"Brick, are you sure this is gonna work?" Boomer said, holding Octi.

"Of course it'll work, dummy" Brick said, "They still need each other, and we got the upper-hand in strength."

"I guess..." Boomer said.

"...and what are you still doing with that stupid doll, Boomer!" Brick said, looking at the doll.

"Hey Brick, I think Boomer's turning girly on us!" Butch pointed at Boomer "Hey Boomer, wanna have a tea-party? I'm sure the girls would love to invite you!"

"Shut up, Butch—" Boomer yelled.

"Guys, Guys!" Brick tried to calm his brothers down, though his snicker gave him away. "Now, you remember the plan?"

"Yeah, yeah let's just go already; I'm all ready to kick some Powerpuff butts" Butch said, His usual twitch returning.

Boomer said nothing, and simply put Octi on the roof. The boys then came down to where the girls were fighting the monster; having already beaten it.

_'Let's go home girls'_

**Now boys!**

The Rowdyruff boys each surprised their counter-parts powerful strike, which sent the girls flying back.

"Oh come on!" Buttercup said, "Why now?!"

The girls could barely recover, as the boys instantly flew towards them with a barrage of blows—this angered the girls, and they each retaliated with attacks that pushed the boys back.

"Fry em' guys!" Brick said. The boys began rapidly firing their lasers beams—Once again, not letting the girls time to breathe.

Finally the girls were gritting their teeth in frustration.

_Perfect_

"Let's get them girls!" Blossom yelled.

The girls gave chase to the Rowdyruff boys, who were deliberately flying away from the city, and into the city's forest.

Brick gave a quick nod to his brothers—who nodded back to him.

The boys turned abruptly and flew in separate directions, and the girls followed.

_**Ha! They fell for it!**__,_ Brick thought, _Now, to take care of Blossom._

As they flew deeper into the forest, Brick finally stopped, as did Blossom.

"Ready, Powerpuff?" Brick said, smirking at Blossom.

"What are you boys planning this time?" Blossom asked.

"Well '_babe', _in case you didn't notice—your sisters aren't here." Brick said, "and I'm about to kick your butt to next Tuesday!

"Big words for someone whose plans always back-fire in the dumbest ways possible!" Blossom smirked, "Well believe me, Brick; I don't need my sisters to beat you."

"Ha! We'll see about that, _toots_!" Brick said.

The two exchanged punches and kicks between one another, with Brick having a slight upper-hand over Blossom.

Blossom quickly pulled back, breathed in some air, and attempted to freeze Brick. He retaliated by melting the ice with his fire-breathe.

"What?!... You have fire-breathe too!"

"Yeah," Brick said, grinning, "And... something even better!" His fists suddenly lit up in flames, forming into fireballs.

_This definitely isn't good. _

"I call this, '_Brick's Super meteor shower'_," Brick said, to which Blossom couldn't help but roll her eyes.

Brick began firing a myriad of fireballs towards Blossoms' direction, which Blossom was able to dodge with relative ease.

"Ha!—is that all you've got Brick!"

"You wish, girlie!"

Brick put his hands together, combining the two fireballs into a single gigantic one. Surprisingly though, he aimed it at the ground as opposed to Blossom.

The explosion did nothing, but spread dust and smokes across the place. "Hey—what—gives?! Blossom said, blinded by the smoke.

As soon as the smoke faded away, Blossom realized that Brick was nowhere to be found.

_Brick?_

No answer.

"Come out, come out where ever you a—" Blossom was interrupted by a sudden ambush from the trees, as Brick landed Blossom a kick to the side—throwing her off balance.

Brick once again hid behind a grove of trees, "Careful were you're looking now, _babe!_"

"Hey, that's not fair!—" Blossom said, only to be hit by two laser beams, coming from between the trees.

_Great. Just great._

...

-**Bubbles and Boomer**-

...

Bubbles was chasing after Boomer into the forest, barely catching up to him. Then, according to plan, Boomer stopped in his tracks and landed on the ground—Bubbles followed.

Bubbles gave Boomer an angry look, who simply smirked.

The two charged towards each other. Bubbles attempted to hit Boomer in the face, but he quickly blocked it, and retaliated with a roundhouse kick, sending Bubbles crashing into a tree.

Gritting her teeth, Bubbles attacked Boomer as fast as she can, not giving him time to breathe.

The only way Boomer managed to escape the attack was by shocking Bubbles with a lightning blast.

Both gasping lightly from the attacks, Bubbles finally decided to speak up, "**Where's my Octi, you big meanie!**"

Boomer suddenly remembered Bubbles' toy-octopus, and how he left it on the rooftop of a skyscraper. He decided to use the opportunity to provoke Bubbles.

"What, that stupid toy of yours?" Boomer said, smirking "I blew it up to little pieces!"

Bubbles could not believe her ears, her heart suddenly sank. She didn't say anything, barely holding back her tears, she flew off.

Boomer simply stood in place, utterly confused. Not knowing what to do, he decided to go after her.

After a bit of scouting, Boomer heard soft cries coming from down below.

Finally Boomer saw Bubbles, sitting on a tree stump—crying her eyes out. Suddenly a feeling of guilt was overcoming him. He felt terrible for lying to Bubbles, and yet he couldn't let her see him.

Boomer couldn't find any words to say, instead he slowly flew away.

Thoughts were racing through his head. His eyes fixed on the city below him.

_Why do I even care... I mean, I don't!..I don't care!... S-Stupid powerpuff..!_

Boomer finally reached the building where he left Bubbles' stuffed toy. It was stil there, completely untouched. Boomer quickly picked it up.

Boomer looked at the purple toy for a moment, slowly examining it.

_Stupid toy..._

...

Boomer returned to the forest where Bubbles was no longer crying, but was staring gloomily at the ground.

Boomer quietly sneaked behind Bubbles, and laid the octopus on the ground. He was ready to leave, but decided to distract Bubbles so that she'll notice Octi. He picked up a small rock and threw it against a tree.

Hearing the sound Bubbles turned around and saw Octi.

_**Octi!**_

Bubbles picked up Octi, hugging him as hard as she could—Boomer of course was nowhere to be seen.

Bubbles simply looked up at the sky, and smiled.

...

-**Blossom and Brick**-

...

Blossom was severely injured, struggling to fight against Brick—who continued with his strategy of ambushing her.

"Come out already, you bastard!"

_**If you say so!**_

Brick quickly came rushing towards Blossom, delivering a crushing blow to her gut. Blossom bent down to the ground, and grabbed her stomach in pain.

Blossom was quite injured, but still had enough power in her to fight. Unfortunately Brick didn't give her a chance to; He began kicking her repeatedly, while she was down on the ground— helpless to do anything about it.

**BLOSSOM!**

A blue-colored stipe came towards Brick, pushing him away from Blossom.

"Bubbles!" Blossom said, recovering from the attack.

_What!? Why isn't Boomer fighting that blue puff!—wait til' I get my hands on him!_

"Blossom are you alright!?" Bubbles said, shocked by her sister's wounds.

"Yeah Bubbles, I'm Ok—don't worry." Blossom gave Bubbles a reassuring smile.

Bubbles turned to face Brick, who was still angry at his brother, "Y-You! How could you do this to Blossom, you big jerk!"

"She was asking for it" Brick said, simply crossing his arms.

Bubbles gave Brick a glare that _actually _caused him step back a bit,

"Why you..!"

Much to Brick's surprise (and Blossom's), Bubbles rushed towards him, and gave him a powerful punch that sent him flying deep into the forest.

Blossom stared at Bubbles with her jaw hanging open, "...Bubbles"

Bubbles abruptly shifted back to her sweet, innocent self "Yes Blossom?"

Brick was lying motionless on the floor, still trying to comprehend what just happened.

Holy cow, Remind me never to make _that girl_ angry, again— Brick thought, suddenly feeling a bit sorry for Boomer.

_Guess I have no chance against both of em'..._

Brick decided to fly away before the girls could find him. _"Better go find Butch before they do."_

Meanwhile Blossom and Bubbles were still waiting for Brick to return.

"Do you think he's gone, Blossom?" Bubbles asked.

"Well after that number you did on him, I think realized he's no match for the two of us." Blossom said, "Man, I wish Buttercup was here to see—**BUTTERCUP**!

Blossom realized where her sister might be.

"Bubbles, we need to find Buttercup!" Blossom said, "She might be fighting his brothers, as we speak!"

"Oh no!" Bubbles said, putting her hands over her mouth.

The girls began scanning the forest looking for Buttercup, "Buttercup!" Blossom yelled.

_Buttercup!_

**BUTTERCUP!**

No response.

"This isn't working Blossom!" Bubbles said.

Blossom thought for a moment—"Bubbles, use your sonic scream!"

.

Bubbles nodded. She took in some air, and screamed at the top of her lungs. Blossom, meanwhile, covered her ears.

Suddenly everything was quiet.

**BUBBLES...!**

The girls jumped, "Bubbles did you hear that!?"

"Aha!" Bubbles nodded, "It's coming from over there," She pointed to her left.

Let's go, Bubbles!

...

Approaching, the girls saw broken trees and craters in the ground. The two rivals destroyed—what seemed to be—a huge chunk of the forest during their fight.

Buttercup and Butch were both fighting, not too far away.

Their fighting was brutal and impulsive—with little, to no talking in between. Both Butch and Buttercup had some injuries on their bodies—Buttercup had a black eye, two dislocated joints and a broken tooth; Butch had multiple scars on his face, a dislocated wrist, a black eye and some of his hair torn—but neither of them was planning to give up anytime soon.

Buttercup was slamming Butch against a giant boulder—to the point that it was disintegrated into dust.

Butch, now very angry, grappled her to the ground with his entire body and proceeded to punch her in the face with all his strength.

While it definitely hurt Buttercup, she was too busy getting mad to care. She blasted Butch off of her with an intense beam, sending him flying into the debris.

Butch was ready to pummel Buttercup to death by this point-

_**Buttercup!**_

Buttercup's fight was interrupted by the sudden yell of her sisters.

"Girls!" Buttercup said, joyfully looking at her sisters.

"Buttercup, are you Okay?" Blossom asked, concerned.

"Yeah I'm fine, I was just—"

**BUTCH!**

Brick appeared out of nowhere, looking at his brother, the girls and the the mess that was made. "There you are!"

"Brick!" Butch said, still panting. "How'd ya find us?"

"I simply went after the girls" Brick said, "They were easy to spot once they used their mega-scream thing"

"For your information, it's called 'The sonic screa—!" Blossom Corrected

"**SHUT UP!**"The boys yelled. Blossom backed off.

"I see the Powerpuff gave you a tough time, ha?" Brick mocked.

"No! I was beating her until you all came along" Butch pointed at the girls and his brother.

"Fat chance, spikey!" Buttercup mocked.

"**Why you!—" **Butch was ready to strangle her.

"Enough Butch!" Brick ordered, "We lost because of that dolt, Boomer."

Bubbles' gaze dropped to the ground at the mention of Boomer's name.

"Oh come on, Brick!" Butch raised his hands, "We can still beat them without Boomer's help!"

"If you haven't noticed yet bird-brain, we're outnumbered and you're barely in any condition to fight." Brick said,

"Also, like it or not, but we still need Boomer to beat those girls." Brick said, remembering his brief encounter with Bubbles.

Butch frowned but said nothing.

"Now, as for you, girls!" Brick turned to the girls, who were simply watching the whole time, "Don't think this is over; Next time you better prepare yourself." Brick tried to sound as threatening as possible.

"Oooh—We're shaking in our boots!" Buttercup said, sarcastically terrified.

"Yes boys, please reconsider destroying us next time?" Blossom joined in, "we're still so young!"

The girls quickly burst into laughter, while the boys gritted their teeth in frustration.

.

"Let's go, Butch" Brick ordered.

And just like that, the boys were gone.

...

After a while the Powerpuff girls stopped laughing as well, and Blossom shifted to a more serious tone.

"Now girls, while the boys failed to beat us thus far, we should always be on the look-out for them," Blossom said, "They aren't push-overs, and—as you can see—they're pretty determined."

"Got it girls?"

"Got it!" Buttercup and Bubbles said.

"Good," Blossom said, "I think it's safe to say that we can put this excruciating day behind us."

"Amen!" Buttercup said, still breathing heavily.

The girls yawned, and went home; getting ready for a well-deserved, good night sleep.

.

* * *

**.**

**If you are one of the 5 people who will ever read this chapter/story, then you may have noticed that the ****original ****Rowdyruff boys did not encounter the girls yet—despite planning to do so— This isn't a plot-hole, and ****will be ****explained in the next chapter.**

**...**


	4. Chapter 4

**_Hi, this is the 4th chapter of the story. I've originally planned for this to be much longer, but I'll save the rest for the next chapter/s._**

**_This one's going to mostly focus on the day from the previous chapter, but from Mojo's boys' perspective. _**

* * *

...

The city of Townsville was fast asleep. Streetlights were still illuminating the roads, but there were barely any people wandering around. The only sounds heard throughout, are those of crickets chirping. There was one person however, who wasn't sleeping—he couldn't.

_Stop it!_

Boomer, the blue Ruff, was lying on the roof of that same skyscraper. He felt something; He already gave her the toy—so now what?

_Leave me alone, already!_

Taking a breath of air, Boomer got up on his feet. He knew what awaited him back home, so he flew there as slowly as he possibly could.

After a few good minutes, Boomer was finally standing next to "his" home. He stretched his hand towards the handle; he was trembling. Opening the door slightly, he peeked inside. His brothers were there, and judging by their looks, they were not happy to see him.

"Come in"

Boomer walked in, closing the door behind him. He wanted to muster up even a tiny smile, but he could barely look at his brothers—especially Brick.

"Brick, I..."

"No Boomer, Don't even try." Brick said, "You know Boomer, just once I would like you to follow my orders properly."

"But..."

"You know, you've got some nerve; just leaving me and Butch to fight against those girls," Brick said, "Where the hell were you!"

Boomer was silent. He couldn't possibly tell his brothers that he left because he felt sorry for, of all people, a Powerpuff girl. He knew that his brothers would never forgive him if he told them the truth. At the same time, he was tongue-tied, and couldn't think of anything else to say.

"Well, Boomer you leave me no choice. As of today you are no longer an official member of the Rowdyruff boys."

Brick's words hurt Boomer. He could never have imagined being banished by his own brothers. He was an emotional wreck. Boomer didn't argue, but simply walked out through the door.

It was late. Boomer was wandering the city; he needed somewhere to sleep. In any other circumstance, he would break into a home, and dispose of the unsuspecting owner, but this time, he simply wanted to be left alone to himself. It wasn't long before he found a simple bench and drifted to sleep—trying his hardest to forget this miserable day.

...

**Earlier that day...**

The Rowdyruff boys were eating their dinner, prepared meticulously by Mojo Jojo. While nothing to brag about; the Rowdyruff boys had **some** sense of table manners, and were doing their best not to mess up the kitchen—especially after the scolding they received from Mojo after nearly destroying it the first time. Brick and Butch were enjoying their food, while Boomer was looking at the plate, feeling the food with his fork.

"Boomer, are you Okay?" Brick asked.

"Yeah Boomer, You haven't uttered a word since yesterday."

Boomer snapped out of his trance, and looked up from his plate to his brothers.

"Guys, do you feel it too?"

Brick thought to himself for a moment, what exactly was he supposed to feel. Butch simply scratched his head in confusion.

"It's just... what are we going to do to the Powerpuff girls when we find them?"

"Well that's easy Boomer. We...ahh...w-we—

Brick didn't know what to say suddenly. He began feeling the same way Boomer was feeling; he was at a loss of words.

"I-I don't know Boomer..."

"It's like...I want revenge, after what they've done, but I don't want to hurt them too bad.

Brick looked down, scratching his chin.

"I think I know what's going on here," Brick said. "Mojo said he made us from toilet water the first time, right?.

His brothers nodded.

"Well, how did you feel back then?"

"Angry I guess..." Boomer said.

"Yeah, I wanted to kill anything that moved—heck, I'm surprised we didn't just finish off Mojo"

"Right," Brick continued, "Well, yesterday he told us that he used the stable chemical this time."

"So you're saying we've 'stabilized'?" Boomer said.

Brick kept quiet for a while, while Butch still stared at his brothers, utterly confused.

"Exactly," Brick said, "Besides making us less hot-headed, the chemical—more or less—stabilized our sense of right and wrong. That means that we're no longer the trigger-happy maniacs we were in the beginning."

Boomer followed Brick's every word, while Butch was still trying to collect his thoughts.

"Are you sure it's the chemical though?" Butch said, "I mean, who wouldn't be pissed if they were born in a toilet, and had to put up with Mojo's constant babbling."

The three boys laughed.

"Trust me Butch. We wouldn't feel the way we do if not for the chemical," Brick said, "I mean, you obviously feel it too, right?"

Butch, being the tough one, had a harder time accepting the fact that he may have gone softer after their recreation. However he was slowly giving in, seeing as that's how he truly felt.

"Yes"

"So are we going to find them today?" Boomer asked.

None of the boys—except maybe Butch—were too eager to fight the Powerpuff girls today. They wanted to check out the city—having never really seen it except when fighting the girls.

"Nah. I say we wait until tomorrow" Brick said, "Besides, if we're going to attack, then I'll need to think of a good plan first"

"You mean **we'll** think of a plan." Butch said.

Brick, being Blossom's counter-part, seemed to share some of her traits—arrogance and vanity, among other things—though it is still largely unknown who was more connected with those traits.

"Sure Butch, maybe if I'm crippled and lose my ability to think, then yes, you can think of a plan."

Brick was.

"Mark my words, Brick, I'll beat you to a bloody pulp one day."

Brick gave Butch a fake-scared look—putting his hand over his mouth and gasping jokingly.

"Now, come on guys, I wanna see what this city's all about!" Brick said.

"Yeah, let's—"

"**Boys, are you leaving to take care of those accursed Powerpuff girls**?"

Mojo's voice came from another room.

"Yes, Mojo!" Brick said, "we're going to find those 'accursed' Powerpuffs, as soon as possible!"

The boys resisted hard not to laugh.

"Yeah," Boomer continued, "We'll show those big, mean girls, that you don't mess with us, and get away with it!"

"Yeah Mojo, you better have three graves ready by the time we come back!"

The boys had tears in their eyes, as they were trying not to laugh at Mojo.

"Very good. Carry on"

Mojo had no clue, as to what was going on, and returned to reading his newspaper in peace.

Brick pointed to the door, as the boys could no longer hold their laughter. They quickly flew down to the ground, where they burst into laughter—rolling on the grass and pounding on it with their hands.

"Man, for a genius mastermind, Mojo sure is a clueless monkey." Butch said.

"Yeah, you would think he'd be smarter with such a big, boring thesaurus" Brick added.

"Hey guys, look!"

Boomer began imitating Mojo—crossing his eyes.

"I Mojo Jojo, will build a giant robot that will finally destroy those Powerpuff girls forever!" Boomer said, "...As soon as I build a remote to turn on that big, giant brain on my head!"

The boys laughed even harder.

"Come on guys let's have a look around the city," Brick said, wiping a tear from his eye.

The Rowdyruff boys went off the ground and flew towards the city. The city is usually filled with people during the day, so the boys kept a low profile, flying above it; the boys were pondering over where to go first.

"So, where do you wanna go, guys?" Brick asked.

"Arcade, arcade!" Boomer said, pointing at the mall.

"No, let's go to the bowling alley!"

Brick considered both options.

"Arcade it is!"

Butch groaned, while Boomer raised his hands in victory.

"But first, let's buy something to eat."

_Mojo and his bite-size meals..._

The boys flew to the nearest 'McDonald's' joint; still hungry, despite eating minutes ago. The boys went inside, hurriedly approaching the counter. They weren't noticing the horrified reactions of the people inside—too anxious to eat at McDonald's for the first time.

The girl behind the counter did her best stay on the boys' good side. Forcing the most exaggerated smile on herself. She was a brunette 18-year-old, saving money for college; well aware of the boys' reputation by now.

"H-How... m-m-may I... s-s-serve you?"

The boys looked at the menu for a moment—trying to decide on what they would eat. The girl, meanwhile, was shaking—afraid of making any sudden movements.

"Hmm... I'll have... _the double quarter pounder with cheese__, and...coke_" Brick said.

"I'll have the A_ngus bacon&cheese and a Dr. Pepper." _Butch said.

"A-And.. f-for you?" She asked Boomer.

Boomer was having trouble deciding.

"Uh... I don't know... what would you suggest?

"w-well...uhh... I w-wou—

"Wait! I know!" Boomer yelled, "I'll have the _double cheeseburger_—No wait!— I'll have the _Chicken McNugget_—No wait!...

The girl behind the counter was practically sweating by this point, while Brick and Butch were getting annoyed by Boomer's indecisiveness.

"Boomer just pick something!" Brick ordered.

"Fine, fine..._Uh, I'll have the McChicken burger and a strawberry shake_, please."

"I-Is that all?"

"Well I—"

Brick put his hand over Boomer's mouth before he could say anything—much to the girl's relief.

"**Yes that is all.**" Brick said, glaring at Boomer.

The girl rushed into the kitchen, basically shouting the order for everybody to hear—making sure it's done as fast as possible. The boys simply gave each other confused looks, as they watched the poor girl rushing to bring everything to the counter.

The boys' mouths began watering after seeing their food.

"That sure smells good." Butch took a whiff.

"Hey guys, remember we have to pay for this" Brick whispered.

"We do?" Butch asked.

"Well, she was nice," Boomer said, "A little weird though..."

Brick took out a wallet from his pocket, and began counting the money inside.

"Ahh... How much will that be?"

The girl's forced smile grew into an even bigger one, and she was trembling even stronger now.

"Ch-charge?!" The girl said, wildly waving her hands "N-No charge—compliments of the house!"

"Really? Thanks... uh.. Mindy," Brick said, looking at her name-tag.

Mindy smile was unnaturally large, and sweat was dropping from her face in buckets.

"N-N-No pl-pleasure!—s-serving you was a problem!" Mindy mumbled, "Well, would you look at the time—sorry gotta go!"

Mindy looked at her wrist which, incidentally, had no watch on it; she pushed a button, and a steel wall came slamming down the counter. The boys simply stared as the counter closed before them.

"Told you she was nice," Boomer said.

The boys spent the rest of the day flying around the city looking for fun things to do on their supposed "day off". They went to the arcade, where people ran away from the mere sight of them—allowing them to use-up all the change that the staff left behind; they were the only occupied lane at the bowling alley; they also saw the monster that the girls beat that day—With its forearms still stuck inside the concrete.

Finally it was getting dark, and the boys decided to head home—preferring to walk there instead of flying—seeing how they were flying above Townsville for the entire day—Trying to avoid being seen by people for obvious reason.

"Well that was fun" Boomer said.

"Would have been more fun, if people weren't trying to avoid us like the plague!" Butch complained.

The boys watched as people were coming home from work; lights were slowly dimming in the windows; neighbors were screaming at each other for no reason—the boys felt good seeing all of it, and for once felt relieved that they weren't just doing what they were supposed to be doing—fighting the girls, and helping Mojo with his schemes.

"Hey guys look!" Brick said.

They were passing the monster that they saw earlier that day—still no sign of life, and still stuck.

"Shouldn't they have taken care of him by now?" Butch said.

"Don't count on it, bro" Brick said, "I've heard the mayor of the city is a real doofus. It'll probably take weeks to take care of a monster that big."

"Maybe we can get rid of him," suggested Boomer.

"Nah," Brick shook his head "The girls will probably take care of it, before the city does."

Minutes later the boys were going up the stairs to Mojo's lair. The boys quietly opened the door; it was dark inside, so they had to turn on the lights. Once the lights were on, the boys saw something that made them snicker—Mojo fell asleep on the couch, with a newspaper covering his face; which was soggy from his own drool.

The boys sneaked up on Mojo

_I, hereby, accept the key to the city..._

The boys almost blew their cover, when they heard Mojo talking in his sleep.

"Shhhh... shut up!" Brick whispered.

…

**MOJO WAKE UP!**

**Wha—what?!**

Mojo fell from the couch, hurting his head; his eyes were still closed. He was mumbling something unintelligible, barely paying attention to the boys.

"Mojo, we're home!" Brick said.

_mmmffffffffffff..._

"Yeah, Mojo we had a blast today!" Butch said.

_mmmffffffffff..._

"We didn't find the Powerpuff girls today, though..." Boomer added.

_mmmff...curse you powerpuff...mffff..._

The boys looked at each other, not daring to miss an opportunity like this...

**YOU STINK MOJO!**

Mojo once again mumbled something under his breath, smelling his own armpit—just to make sure. He then, supposedly, sleep-walked his way to his bedroom, and tucked himself in—still mumbling to himself.

_Stupid boys..._

The boys did not bother restraining themselves, and simply laughed as hard as they could for almost 5 minutes.

"I just hope he won't remember this tomorrow" Boomer said.

"Nah, I'm sure he already knows it" Butch said

"Anyway guys, we better go to sleep," Brick said, "I think we've had our fun for today."

His brothers nodded in agreement, and went to their new bedroom.

"Good night, guys."

_Tomorrow's going to be interesting._

_..._

* * *

**_Thanks for reading. I hope this was written better than the previous chapters._**

**_I'll update soon._**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5! Woohoo!** ***sarcastic ****applause***

**As usual. Enjoy!**

* * *

…

**Part I – The Crime Scene**

...

Sometimes the hardest part of being a super-hero, are the normal things one has to go through in their daily lives. Buttercup, for instance, has this habit of staring at the clock for the entire day, while the teacher explains '_some stupid things that she will never need in her life'; _it makes the hours seem like days sometimes.

Bubbles, too, has this problem. Sometimes she listens to Miss Keane and tries to understand all those equations on the board, but, mostly, she likes to drift-away into her own little world; sometimes even seeing her drawings come to life right before her very eyes.

Then, there's Blossom, listening to the teacher's every word, always taking notes, always with a stern look on her face. Her devotion to her studying, and her constant thirst for knowledge, naturally, makes her the best student in class—sometimes to the point that others call her the teacher's "pet". To her though, it didn't matter; time went by faster for her then for anybody else.

The Hot line rang, serving as a wake up call to Bubbles and Buttercup.

"Hello, Mayor..." Miss Keane picked up the phone. "I understand. I'll tell them immediately."

She turned to the Powerpuff girls who already leaped up from their seats.

"Girls, the City Bank is being held hostage."

Without a single word, the girls burst through the ceiling, leaving a class full of dumbfounded kids and one defeated teacher.

_I guess they'll never learn to use the door..._

...

The girls flew to the bank—Buildings came and went, as the girls drew closer and closer.

"Alright girls," Blossom said, "Let's finish this quickly, so we can get back to class."

The girls, once again, smashed the ceiling of the Bank getting in—with enormous chunks of the ceiling falling on the floor.

**Not so fast, criminal scum!**

People around them were lying flat on their stomachs with their hands clutching their heads. Three armed men were pointing their guns, collecting people's valuables into a comically, over-sized bag; another man was spitting threats at the cashier—_which were almost inaudible, since the burglars apparently forgot to cut holes in their masks around the mouth area._

All of that came to a halt when the girls arrived—as if time simply stopped for a split second.

"You guys will never learn, will you?" Blossom said.

One thug simply mumbled something behind his thick, cotton mask; from what the girls heard it sounded like: '_Oh fit, it's the Powerpuff girls_' and '_shot them_'.

The girls did not wait for the robbers to fire their guns at them—which wouldn't have as much as tickled them; instead Blossom breathed in all the air she could muster and covered every last crook in a thick, glossy layer of ice—_Had the hostages not been lying, face-down on the floor, the ice would have frozen them as well._

"That ought to keep them still for a while," Blossom said.

"Yeah. That won't melt anytime soon." Buttercup tapped on one of the blocks, accidentally knocking it over. "Oops..."

"Come on girls, let's get them outside for the police to take them."

The girls lifted the blocks, which were as light as feathers; Buttercup took one in each hand.

The police were already surrounding the area—late as usual. The girls helped melting the frozen robbers—_seeing as arresting giant ice-cubes was rather impractical._

Minutes later, the girls were all set to return to Kindergarten to continue their routine. Blossom, not wanting to miss out on any more material, hurried at a blinding pace; Buttercup, determined to get there before Blossom, flew after her.

...

**Chapter II – A Discovery **

...

Seeing her sisters fly away, Bubbles shrugged and headed to kindergarten, though taking a different route through Townsville central park.

The park, where people would go to relax, chat, or have quality-times with their families; the park where Bubbles would often play with her toys, draw or just relax after a long day of studying—_was empty_.

"Where is everybody?"

Bubbles landed on the grass; her footsteps and the wind blowing against her face, were the only sounds she could hear throughout. She strolled around, looking for somebody to talk to, approaching a rusty, old bench.

_Maybe I'll ask that poor, homeless man._

The body on the bench was covered, top-to-bottom in a paper-thin sheet. Bubbles could hear faint snores coming from underneath.

"Excuse me." Bubbles tugged at the sheet. "Mister?"

"Mister?"

Bubbles began pulling the sheet away. The more parts of the person she revealed, the more her eyes grew bigger and bigger.

"B-Boomer?"

Boomer was asleep on the bench, his eyes had faint-black circles around them and his shirt was soaked around the neckline. His hair was messier than usual—supposedly from sleeping on such a hard surface for too long

"Boomer?" Bubbles tapped on his shoulder. "Wake up"

Boomer twitched, squinting his eyes.

Bubbles flinched upon seeing his eyes, which were almost unnaturally red.

Forcing his eyes open, he tried to make out the small, blue blur before him. It wasn't long before his eyes regained focus, and he could see Bubbles standing in front of him.

Boomer?

His heart pounding, his breathing quickened, Boomer pushed away from the bench, and tumbled to the ground.

"Boomer, what h—"

"**No, get away from me**!"

Boomer sprang to his feet, still looking at Bubbles in fright, through his bloodshot eyes. "Just leave me alone!" He quickly flew off. Bubbles followed him.

...

Minutes later both were entering a forest, fully aware of each others presence.

"I told you to leave me alone; stop following me already!"

Unlike the park where Bubbles would go to have fun and enjoy herself, the forest was a completely different matter. She would visit here, to get away from her—every now and then—patronizing sisters or when she simply felt sad.

"But why?" Bubbles said, "you look horrible, what happened to you?"

"It's non of your business!"

Bubbles backed away, but she could see it—she could see him trying to hold back his tears.

"I saw you crying...crying over that stupid toy of yours; do you know what I thought?"

Bubbles did not answer.

"I thought how I'm like that." Boomer's eyes were watering. "How I-I'm just like that...

"I'm just as much of a baby as you; **I'm just as weak as you**."

Those words hit Bubbles like a boulder; her mouth twisted into a grimace. She drew closer to Boomer.

"You know Boomer," Bubbles said, "I'm not as strong as my sisters, and sometimes I cry over silly things—

"But you know what?" Bubbles grabbed Boomer by his shirt. "I don't care because I'm also sweet, caring, funny and I can be tough when I need to be.

"**and I'm not ashamed of that!**"

Boomer didn't know what to say; even as Bubbles was holding him, Boomer kept his eyes on the ground.

Goodbye, Boomer!

Bubbles let go of Boomer and flew home—seeing as she missed a whole day of school, going after him.

...

**Part III – An Unexpected Visitor**

...

The Utonium household had always been a nice and well-kept place to live in—though that is to be expected in a place that's practically dominated by females. The Professor didn't really mind the, slight, womanly-touch that the girls brought into the house, though he usually preferred the simplicity of his own room or his lab.

Bubbles opened the door, looking around to see if anybody was home, and tiptoed to her room. She carefully went up the stairs, making sure not to make any noise.

"Bubbles!"

Bubbles froze in her tracks, upon hearing the Professor's voice.

"Yes professor..." Bubbles said, her voice barely a whisper.

"Bubbles, Miss. Keane told me you weren't at school today." Professor gave her a stern look.

"B-But w-we went to stop a bank robbery." Bubbles brushed her arm.

"Yes, but Blossom and Buttercup came back, and you didn't," Professor said.

Bubbles looked pained.

The professor approached Bubbles and knelt to her level. "Listen Bubbles..." He gently stroked her head "You know that I care deeply for you and your sisters, and I could never be angry with you.

"I just want you girls to be happy in life, and to make sure nothing bad happens to you."

Yes professor...

"And frankly..." The professor shifted to a more humorous tone. "I'm a little surprised—I would expect this kind of behavior from Buttercup, but definitely not from you."

Bubbles giggled at this.

"Now with that said..." The Professor crossed his arms. "I'm still grounding you for three days—just to make sure that you've learned your lesson."

"Okay..."

She went to her room, closing the door behind her.

...

Later that day the girls were relaxing in their room. Blossom was brushing up on her Chinese—mumbling something in Chinese, and then saying the definition aloud; Buttercup was teasing Bubbles for skipping out on school for the first time.

"So, Bubbles why exactly did you not come to class?" Buttercup smirked.

"I won't say!" Bubbles was annoyed by Buttercup's persistence.

"Leave her alone Buttercup; I'm sure she had good reasons." Blossom flipped a page. "Just make sure you make up for lost hours Bubbles.

_Bubbles had pretty good grades in school, despite having trouble concentrating sometimes—she didn't have to worry about them so much, unlike Buttercup._

"Okay Blossom"

The Professor was in the Kitchen, washing the dishes that the girls left behind. Usually the girls cleaned up after themselves, but the Professor insisted this time—_sometimes feeling useless around the kitchen_.

He suddenly heard a soft knock on the door—the person on the other side was probably not too thrilled to come in, since the next knock came, roughly, after 15 seconds.

The Professor approached, grabbed the handle and swiftly opened the door. "Yes, how may I h—

The Professor immediately stopped once he realized that a Rowdyruff boy was standing in the doorway.

The professor started sweating profusely. "Um...y-yes..?

"Uhh, I need to talk to Bu...Bubbles" He still had some trouble remembering her name.

"M-May I ask, w-why?" The professor was stumbling, too afraid to call for help.

"I-I need to tell her I'm s...s-sorry."

Of all the things that the Professor expected to hear, this wasn't even remotely on the list.

"Apologize?" The Professor wiped his brow. "what for?"

"It's kinda' personal."

The Professor gave the boy a doubtful look, but did as he was asked heading towards the girls' room. Boomer's hand stopped him though.

"Wait—can you NOT tell her it's me, cause she might not wanna talk to me..."

"Of course"

...

He went upstairs to call Bubbles, though he would understand if she'd be reluctant to come. He opened the door where the girls were.

"Uhh... Bubbles, could you come down for a moment," He said, "There's someone who wants to see you"

Bubbles lifted her head from the piece of paper on which she was drawing on, and walked out of the room.

Bubbles saw Boomer waiting below.

Boomer was, somewhat, admiring the Utoniums' house; he couldn't help but look around in awe at the different rooms and furniture; he also couldn't believe how clean, big and overall pleasant the place looked—especially compared to Fuzzy's cabin.

Bubbles approached Boomer—both pairs of eyes firmly fixed on one another.

"Yes Boomer?"

"Bubbles, we need to talk about something."

"What?" Bubbles asked.

"Umm... c-can we talk somewhere else?" Boomer glanced at the place one more time

"Sorry." Bubbles hung her head. "but I'm grounded"

"What...?"

"I'm not allowed outside, because I skipped school, following you today"

"Schoo—never mind—Please this is important!"

Bubbles and Boomer went into the Kitchen, where the Professor just finished washing a handful of dishes.

"Professor." Bubbles tugged at his lab coat. "Can I please, please go talk to Boomer outside; it's really, really important."

"Sorry Bubbles, but I've learned the hard way that making exceptions is a bad idea." The Professor recalled all the times his exceptions towards Buttercup backfired, horribly.

"Excuse me...Uh..."

"You can call me _Professor_." Professor said.

"Yes...Uhh, you see P-Professor, I'm the reason Bubbles missed sch...sch-

"School"

"Yeah," Boomer continued, "she followed me, cause she wanted to help me"

"Help you?" The Professor scratched his head. "with what?"

"That's what I wanna talk to her about," Boomer said, "Please Professor this is really important."

The Professor stroke his chin, still not entirely sure whether he could trust the boy. Eventually though his kind, loving side took over his disciplinary-father side—which was never really that strong to begin with.

"Alright, but I want you to return home safe and sound; understand Bubbles?"

"Yes Professor." Bubbles nodded.

The two kids took off—leaving the Professor standing on the doormat.

...

**Part IV – The Forest**

...

Both flew high up in the air, looking for a place where they could talk. Almost immediately they agreed on the forest—apparently Bubbles isn't the only one who frequents there; although Boomer still has trouble finding his way around.

"Let's go there." Bubbles pointed at a small, empty spot with only handful of trees.

The two landed on the ground, only hearing the crunching sounds of dried leaves as they've stepped on them.

"So Boomer what did you want to talk about?"

Boomer wasn't listening; he loved coming to the forest—maybe even more than Bubbles. He gets easily distracted by this place.

"Boomer..."

"Hello, earth to Boomer..." Bubbles tapped on his shoulder.

Silence

Bubbles came up with a sneaky idea. She slowly pursed her lips together and leaned forward to kiss Boomer on the cheek

Almost, instinctively, Boomer lost his balance and collapsed to the ground, avoiding the kiss.

**DON'T DO THAT!**

Bubbles burst out laughing at Boomer's unbelievably over-the-top reaction; her ill attempts at apologizing between bouts of laughter weren't helping either.

I...I'm sorry...but you're s-so cute... when your... all jumpy like that. Hahahaha!

"That's not funny!" Boomer's cheeks were burning red, as he stumbled through his speech.

Bubbles' laughter faded after a few minutes.

"So, what is it?" she asked.

"Right." Boomer took a few steps away from Bubbles. "Look, I'm sorry that I called you a weak, cry-baby, back then; it's just...

Boomer realized that the more he spoke, the harder it was to say what he wanted.

"It's just... I feel weak; I feel it, and my brothers keep saying it.

"Your brothers called you weak?"

"They...They..." Boomer's eyes began watering, "they kicked me out.."

Bubbles gasped, putting her hands over her mouth.

Boomer could no longer look at her; he turned away, trying his best not to burst into tears—he could only hold it in for so long though.

Finally, Boomer fell on his knees and began sobbing.

Bubbles had never seen Boomer in such a state of despair. She never thought that she would ever feel sorry for a villain—let alone a Rowdyruff boy. She didn't know what to think of all this, or of else that happened between them in the past.

She knew she was taking a risk, but decided to approach the Ruff and wrap her arms around him.

Boomer flinched a bit, but he didn't have the will power to push her away—still crying but to a lesser extent.

Bubbles noticed after a while the crying ceased, but she could feel Boomer was uncomfortable with her hugging him, so she let go. "sorry..."

"I-I need to go." Boomer wanted to fly away, feeling ashamed.

"Boomer wait!" Bubbles grabbed his arm before he could leave.

"Bubbles let me go!"

"No!"

"But why not? You already seen me!

"I'm pathetic and weak..."

What Bubbles did next, totally came as a surprise to both Boomer and Bubbles. Bubbles slapped him across the face.

The slap left a red mark on his face and he let out a groan. "_Hey why'd ya do that!_" He felt his sore cheek.

"I-I'm not sure..." Bubbles said, "Listen Boomer, I've never seen you act that way."

"I'm sorry." Boomer looked down.

"No," Bubbles continued, "it's just I've always thought of you as a ruthless, evil villain."

"Thanks." Boomer was glad that at least his counter-part took him seriously.

"But I don't anymore."

_Drat..._

"But that's who I am! That's who I was made to be!"

"And I thought so too..." Bubbles said, "but you showed me beneath all that you're just a boy, who's not really sure what he wants.

"You showed me that you're considerate—after all you did go out of your way to apologize to me for earlier.

"and now, you showed me a side of yourself, that I never knew existed," Bubbles continued, "and you have nothing to be ashamed of."

"But my B-Brothers?" Boomer kept thinking about his brothers' reaction.

"You just need to be more comfortable with being yourself," Bubbles said, "Then you won't care what they think of you."

Bubbles giggled.

"What?" Boomer snickered.

"I think I actually learned a thing or two myself from that big, fancy speech"

The two kids laughed.

"Wanna go with me to the park?"

"Sure, I—Wait!" Boomer stopped for a second.

"What?"

Boomer looked at Bubbles. "Promise me that you won't do any of that girly, kissy stuff" Boomer said,

"It's scary..."

"Okay, Okay"

_Guess I found my secret weapon._

"Hey, aren't there people everywhere in the park," Boomer asked.

"Don't worry, we'll think of something."

"Now let's go!" Bubbles grabbed Boomer by the hand and the two super-powered kids flew off—leaving the forest.

...

* * *

**So guys, what do you think about this one? Good? Bad? Too long? Too short? Just plain boring? **

**Thanks.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Phew... Well this took a bit longer than I expected. **

**Enjoy!**

**P.S. After reading, check the comment at the bottom. You might find it interesting.**

* * *

...

**Part I - Finding Bubbles**

...

It wasn't long before the Professor's fatherly-instinct kicked into full gear—roughly thirty minutes after Bubbles left with her rival into the forest; the Professor's palms were sweating, his feet were shaking and a million thoughts were racing in his head.

_Bubbles..._

Blossom and Buttercup weren't as concerned about Bubbles as the Professor; in fact, they've barely noticed her absence in the short amount of time she was gone.

"Buttercup, have you seen Bubbles." Blossom's eyes were fixed on her book.

Buttercup was taking her pressure out on her boxing bag, barely paying attention to Blossom. "Ha? What do you want Bubbles?"

"No, I said where's Bubbles?"

The professor barged into the room with sweat dripping down his face and his heart pounding so fast that even the girls could hear it.

**Girls!**

The girls were surprised to say the least—Blossom slammed her book shot, while Buttercup hit the sack so hard, that she sent it flying through the wall and out of the house.

"Professor, what happened?" Blossom asked.

"G-Girls...Girls—Bub...Bubbl...Blubb...!" The Professor stumbled through his words.

"Woah, Professor relax!" Buttercup said.

"Come on Professor, take a nice deep breath.."

The professor took a few gulps of air, before wiping the sweat off of his brow; his pulse seemed to slow down as well.

"Thank you, Blossom." The professor took his last breath, finally regaining his senses.

"Girls I think I've made a terrible mistake..."

"What is it?" Blossom asked.

The Professor squeezed his temples. "I-I let Bubbles wander off with your enemy."

**WHAT!**

"But who?" Blossom asked.

"It was Boomer, of the Rowdyruff boys..." The Professor hung his head.

Blossom and Buttercup could not believe their ears.

"Professor, how could you!" Blossom said.

"Yeah Professor," Buttercup joined. "Don't you know what the boys could do to her!"

Next the Professor had to cover his ears, so that the girls could finish shouting at him—trying to understand the girls was pointless, since both were talking at the same time.

"Girls, let me finish." The professor raised his voice. "I am fully aware of what those boys are capable of...

"But what surprised me, was that Boomer came here to apologize to Bubbles."

"Apologize?" Buttercup scratched her head. "What for?"

It only took Blossom a few seconds, to put two and two together. Her lips formed into a smirk.

"Oh, they're good!" Blossom said, "Professor, me and Buttercup need to talk."

"Alright Blossom, I'll leave you two to talk."

The Professor left the room, and Blossom slammed the door shut.

...

"What's up, Blossom?"

"Oh they're good..." Blossom marched back and forth across the room, while Buttercup gave her a puzzled look.

"Buttercup, do you remember what the boys told us after the fight?"

"That we should be ready next time."

"Exactly!" Blossom zapped towards Buttercup. "Think about it Buttercup, they're trying to eliminate us one-by-one again."

"But why bother?" Buttercup asked. "It didn't work last time."

"Because Buttercup, this time they're keeping it from us!"

Buttercup's eyes widened as she realized what her sister meant. "Then what are we waiting for we have to save her!"

"You're right," Blossom said, "We have no time to lose!"

"I'll go tell the Professor." Buttercup started running towards the living room to tell the Professor about the boys' plan, but was stopped by Blossom's hand grabbing her by her dress.

"Buttercup don't even think about it..." Blossom ordered.

"But the professor has to kno—"

"Oh does he?" Blossom interrupted Buttercup.

"Buttercup, come with me for a sec..."

Buttercup followed Blossom downstairs and into the kitchen. Inside they saw the Professor—sitting at the table with his head buried in his hands and a tobacco-pipe between his teeth. He was quietly mumbling something to himself.

"I thought the Professor got rid of that pipe ages ago..." Buttercup said, "Alright Blossom, I see your point. We definitely don't tell him."

"You can imagine how he'll respond after that little performance in our room."

"But where do we go and look for them?"

"Well Buttercup, Bubbles said that they took over Fuzzy's place."

"Oh right!" Buttercup remembered. "Bubbles followed them for a day."

"Right," Blossom said, "Now let's go!"

The girls flew out of the house, making sure to leave through the front door—after receiving a scolding from the professor, for destroying the ceiling for the umpteenth time.

…

Inside the cabin of the, now tied up, Fuzzy Lumpkins, Butch and Brick were spending their time on their new video-game console, which they conveniently "borrowed".

"You know what?" Butch looked at the screen. "This place isn't all that bad, once you start filling it up with cool stuff.

"Yeah," Brick said, "We're still missing something though..."

"Boomer?" Butch suggested.

Brick thought for a moment before replying. "No, that's not it..."

"You think he's gonna come back soon?" Butch wiggled the controller.

"Trust me dude, my plan's perfect" Brick smirked.

As Brick was thinking to himself, Butch used the opportunity to finish him off in the game. A "game over" screen followed.

"Hey, you're cheating!" Brick yelled.

"Welcome to being a Rowdyruff boy, Brick." Butch said, with a satisfied look on his face.

"Anyway, like I was saying..." Brick started over. "He comes here with his tail behind his legs, and **we** **accept** him back."

"What's the point?"

"He's gonna owe us big time," Brick said, "And he'll follow my every single order like the good, little puppet he is."

"That's evil, bro!" Butch couldn't help but grin at his brother's wickedness.

"Welcome to being a Rowdyruff boy, Butch."

Suddenly, someone started pounding on the wooden door.

_speaking of little puppets..._

_..._

Brick got up from the couch and casually approached the door. He was already preparing a speech in his head—mocking Boomer for his stupid behavior.

"Well, Well, Well..." Brick opened the door. "Our Boomer decided to come home?"

...

"Wrong Brick" Blossom said.

Brick's red eyes grew to the size of saucers, as he realized that he was opening the door to his arch enemies.

"You!" Brick pointed at the girls. "What the hell do you think you're doing here!"

"Yeah. This is a 'No-Sissy' zone!" Butch mocked.

Buttercup peeked inside and saw broken furniture and dusty walls. "It looks like a 'No-People' zone to me."

"Shut it, Butt-breath!" Butch said.

"Why you-" Buttercup stopped abruptly. "Hey wait a minute, where's Fuzzy?"

The boys took a glance towards the closet; a muffled voice was coming out of it. Fuzzy had been gagged, tied and thrown inside—still managing to survive somehow without food or water.

"We don't know..." Brick said, shrugging his shoulders.

Blossom finally decided to say what they came here to say. Having no desire to stay in the company of the boys for much longer.

"Okay guys, enough playing!" Blossom said, "What how you done to our sister!"

"What?" Brick said. "Your blonde sister isn't here, stupid!"

"Oh please, we know your brother tried capturing our sister today!"

"Yeah." Buttercup said, "Now tell us where she is!"

Brick was about to reply when a sudden realization hit him_. Wait?... Boomer tried capturing the blue puff?_

"Look you two" Brick snapped out of his thoughts. "Whatever my stupid brother thought of doing to your sister has nothing to do with me."

"Yeah right," Blossom gave Brick a smug look. "Like you're not trying to separate us like last time!"

"Ah, Hello!" Brick tapped on Blossom's head, messing up her red bow. "We tried that already, and it didn't work!"

Brick crossed his arms. "Besides, the Rowdyruff boys don't repeat themselves."

"Told you..." Buttercup turned to Blossom.

Blossom was anything but convinced, but she knew they were wasting their time with the boys right now.

"I swear Brick, if you boys-" Brick slammed the door in her face before she finished.

"So now what?" Buttercup asked.

"We go looking for Bubbles."

...

**Part II - Powers Collide**

...

Mojo's laboratory had seen better days— cabinets spread wide open, weapons scattered on the floor, blueprints torn from walls. Mojo lost a device that he was going to use to destroy the Powerpuff girls, and spent the whole day looking for it.

"Where is it!" Mojo dug through piles and piles of weapons.

"No..." he tossed aside the Anti-Powerpuff Ray-Gun.

"No..." he tossed aside the Powerpuff Homing-Missile

The Rowdyruff boys bewilderingly watched Mojo toss aside some of the most desperately-hilarious inventions they've ever seen—among them was the Anti-Puff Slingshot, and the Powerpuff-Giant baulder.

...

**Aha, I found it! **

...

Mojo dug out a tiny laser-gun with a scope on it. "With this I, Mojo Jojo will alter the Powerpuff girls' neurological patterns, and control their minds! Muahahaha!"

Brick looked at his brothers, who could only stare blankly at Mojo. "Come on guys, I think Mojo's lost it."

The boys flew outside of the volcano observatory, leaving the deluded monkey to bask in his own successes.

"Now guys," Brick said, "We need to figure out some way to find those girls.

"How about we beat some people and blow up some buildings?" Butch suggested. "That should get the girls' attention.

"As tempting as that may sound..." Brick looked at Butch. "It'll create more problems than we really need."

"Maybe we could ask Mojo" Boomer innocently suggested. "He probably knows where they are."

"Oh come on!"

"Well..." Brick scratched his head. "I think it would be good to know, just in case..."

It was becoming more and more apparent that the boys lost some of their evil tendencies after being recreated—Boomer and Brick didn't feel the need to cause too much trouble; Butch, while still loved a good fight, wasn't as cold and ruthless as before.

"Fine..." Butch said.

The boys flew back to the volcano observatory to ask Mojo where the girls lived. Opening the door however, the boys were greeted to an amusing, but awkward sight.

...

"**Where is it**!"

..

Mojo Jojo once again lost his "ultimate" weapon among the scattered mess. "It was on the table just now!"

The boys dropped their shoulders in despair.

"So my plan then?..." Butch said.

"Eh.. sure..."

...

The boys left Mojo Jojo and headed to the city. The place is usually busy in the evening, with people going to work, shop or spend time with their families. The Boys landed somewhere in the middle of it all—ready to draw attention to the girls.

"Now guy, remember to shoot at their feet," Brick ordered. "We just want to scare them a little."

"What!

"I thought we were gonna beat someone up!" Butch protested.

"Trust me Butch, the Powerpuff girls will be enough for us" Brick said.

"But-..!

"Butch, no..." Brick crossed his arms.

_Spoil-sport..._

The boys started firing laser beams at people; although the beams always hit the concrete, it was enough to send people running and screaming for help.

"Run! Run little sheep, run!" Butch fired in every direction.

"Dude..." Brick gave Butch a look of concern. "Tone it down a little."

The boys fired at the fleeing crowd until Brick finally gave the order to stop—Much to Butch's dissatisfaction.

"Alright, guys that's enough," Brick said.

"Hey guys, let's blow up that place!" Butch pointed at Pokey Oak's kindergarten.

The boys looked at the small, pink building, with the American flag sticking-out from the top of the roof.

"Well, it's empty..." Boomer said.

"Alright guys," Brick said, "It might get the girls here."

The boys got ready to blow up the girls' school—Brick launched into the air, flying high above the ground. He stopped and quickly dived through the roof, making a hole in the ceiling; Butch plunged through the school's walls like a wrecking-ball—tearing them from all sides; Boomer stayed outside, preferring to use his sonic-scream to shatter the window glass.

Going inside, Brick saw toys scattered on the floor, a teacher's desk and something that made Brick's jaw drop on the floor.

Formulas, equations and numbers written on the school-board. Ms. Keane, once again, got carried away with her enthusiasm for math, since the material was apparently written for University students.

_Man, someone will be thanking us later for this..._

After a while, the kindergarten was barely standing. The walls were broken, the toys and furniture inside turned to ashes—it seemed like the whole place would simply crumble if any more damage was done to it.

"Alright guys I think that's enough. Now we just have to wait for the Pow-"

...

**NOT SO FAST ROWDYRUFF BOYS!**

...

_That was quick..._

The girls came just in time. Seeing the fleeing crowds of people, and the destruction of their kindergarten—finding Bubbles was a secondary priority.

"That does it boys, this time you've gone too far!" Blossom said.

"Oh come on, no _h__ello?_ no _h__ow you've been_? I thought you'd be more glad to see us after all this time." Brick smiled at Blossom.

"What are you talking about?" Blossom looked puzzled.

"And what happened to your hair?" Buttercup noticed the boys' "_new_" hairstyles.

"What's wrong with my hair..." Boomer lightly touched his hair.

Seeing Boomer with the boys, Blossom and Buttercup realized that the boys have successfully captured their sister, and Buttercup was the first to speak.

"Alright you three, what did you do with our sister!"

"Yeah Boomer where did you take Bubbles!" Blossom joined.

"Me?" Boomer pointed at himself.

The boys were incredibly confused. The girls did notice something different about the boys, but they were still convinced that boys were holding their sister hostage.

"Alright guys," Blossom said, "If you're going to be playing dumb, then we'll just have to force it out of you"

"But Blossom, it's two against three!" Buttercup turned to her sister.

In a surprising move, Brick turned to Boomer and asked him something that the girls definitely did not expect.

"Boomer, you okay to pass this one up?"

"I don't mind" Boomer said.

Blossom and Buttercup were surprised to see Boomer pull back out and head to the ground below, where he was going to watch the fight.

"Uhh... thanks..." Blossom said, a smile creeping onto her lips.

"No problem," Brick said, "Now Butch you're ready?"

Butch quickly nodded

The boys got into their fighting stance, ready to fight the Powerpuff girls; while Boomer lay on the grass and watched the two groups. Brick still had a confused look on his face, while Butch didn't seem to care—his thirst for a good, old-fashioned fight was growing stronger with each day.

"Come on Buttercup," Blossom said, "Let's show them what we got!"

Buttercup charged towards Butch, and wasn't surprised to see Butch do the same; what Buttercup didn't expect though was that instead of attacking her head on, Butch began spinning around her. Buttercup slowly felt as she was being sucked into a green-colored whirlwind. She could feel Butch punching her all over her body, but couldn't see him or follow his blows.

She suddenly felt a devastating kick in her gut; it was powerful enough to send her flying out of the whirlwind and crushing into the ground.

Butch approached the crater where Buttercup was lying and peeked inside. "Hey, did I break something down there?"

"Just wait till I-" Buttercup tried getting up, but fell—still dizzy from the whirlwind.

"Careful, it's all about taking baby-steps!" Butch laughed.

...

Blossom and Brick were hovering around each other—trying to find a way through each-others guard. Blossom then formed a large, pink energy-ball in her hands and hurled it at Brick. He, however, saw the energy-ball coming towards him, and stepped to the side—easily avoiding the attack.

"Ha, is that all?" Brick smirked.

Blossom, however, only used the ball to distract Brick from the punch that followed—aimed directly at his face. Brick was quick enough to block it, much to Blossom's surprise, and countered with a spin-kick to the spine; sending Blossom crashing to the ground.

Brick followed Blossom below.

"Sorry, was that too much?" Brick chuckled.

"I didn't think you'd anticipate that one..." Blossom got up on her feet.

"You give me way too little credit, Blossom." Brick smirked.

"Well you'll see—**WAIT? DID YOU JUST CALL BLOSSOM!?**

…

**Chapter III - Truth Revealed**

...

Bubbles and Boomer stood on top of a tall city-tower—the only place they found where no one would see the two together. Talking to each other for over an hour, almost non stop—sharing stories of their day-to-day experiences.

"So wait, you looked just like him!?"

"My sisters told me they could barely tell me and Mojo apart," Bubbles said.

Bubbles was telling Boomer about the time when she acted like Mojo, after a supporting beam fell on her head.

"Wait.. so—" A sudden realization hit Boomer, as he began laughing hysterically.

**YOU WERE WEARING MOJO'S CLOTHES!**

Boomer's face was slowly beginning to take the shade of his blue shirt, as he was nearly chocking from the laughter.

"Shut up!" Bubbles turned red. "I don't even remember it!"

"Sorry, it's just funny!" Boomer laughed. "**Mojo Bubbles**.. or **Bubble-Jojo**!"

Bubbles started laughing as well, when she realized how dumb she must have looked like wearing Mojo's garments.

"Say, do you wanna know something about Brick?"

"What?" Bubbles got excited.

"Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night," Boomer said, "And I hear Brick say your sister's name in his sleep"

Now it was Bubbles who was laughing.

"Though he'd kill me, if he found out I knew.." Boomer said

"Well, that explains all those weird nick-names he gives her." Bubbles imagined the possibility of Blossom and Brick being together.

"**Hey, none of us ****guys**** like you that ****way****!**" Boomer said, embarrassed.

"Oh, of course you do!" Bubbles leaned towards Boomer—trying to kiss him.

Boomer's heart started pounding like a jackhammer, and he immediately leaped back, dodging the kiss; his face turned red.

...

"**I SAID DON'T DO THAT! **

"It creeps me out..."

"Sorr-" Bubbles was cut off by a loud explosion coming from the city.

"Hey, what was that?!" Boomer looked at Bubbles.

Bubbles and Boomer took a glance down the city. Bubbles gasped, realizing that Pokey Oak's kindergarten was covered in flames, with smoke rising into the air.

"Oh no!

"Someone burned down my school!" Bubbles said,

"I have to go check!"

"Wait Bubbles!" Boomer pulled her closer to him. "Let me come with you."

"But Boomer, what if someone sees you?"

"Well, then it's their problem!" Boomer felt something building up inside of him. _It's their problem..._

"Okay Boomer but stay behind me..."

Both kids made their way to the burning kindergarten, with Boomer keeping a slight distance away from Bubbles. Once they've arrived they saw something familiar.

"Hey aren't those your sisters?" Boomer said.

"Yeah. They're fighting your brothers."

_What the... they look different..._

Boomer squinted his eyes, trying get a closer look at his brothers; he then moved his eyes to the ground and what he saw made him instantly turn pale.

"B-Bubbles l-look down..."

Bubbles looked to where Boomer was pointing and her jaw dropped.

"That's... **YOU!"**

The two were looking at Boomer—lying on the grass and lazily watching his siblings fight against the Powerpuff girls in the sky above.

"But... _I'm ME_..." Boomer scratched his head.

In just a matter of seconds, Bubbles saw her sisters tumbling to the ground after receiving crushing blows from Brick and Butch.

"Listen Boomer." Bubbles panicked. "I don't know what's going on here, but I need to go there and help my sisters!"

"But I can't go there..." Boomer stared at the ground.

"That's okay Boomer, I understand." Bubbles came closer and gave Boomer a quick hug, before letting go and walking to where her sisters were.

"Wait Bubbles!" Boomer grabbed Bubbles' hand.

"What?" Bubbles turned around.

"Be careful, okay?"

Bubbles gave Boomer a faint smile and flew off. Boomer watched the blue-puff leave, before letting out a quick sigh.

_Girls..._

...

Bubbles sneaked closer to where Blossom and Brick were standing; trying to hear what both of them were saying.

"Wait—Did you just call me Blossom!"

"Well yeah, I mean YOU are Blossom, aren't you?"

"Well Yes," Blossom said, "but you always call me something insulting like **Babe,** **Toots **or **Sissy** or whatever..."

_What the hell is she talking about?_

"What are you-"

"Blossom!" Bubbles screamed as loudly as she could, rushing towards Blossom.

Everyone stopped in their track and looked at her. Her sisters' eyes widened, as they picked themselves up from the ground and rushed to hug their sister.

"Bubbles, you're okay!" Blossom's hug was literally suffocating Bubbles.

"Yeah Bubbles," Buttercup said, "I thought those boys kidnapped you or something!"

...

**OKAY TIME OUT!**

...

Brick finally found his voice.

"We never kidnapped your sister!" Brick said, "In fact, the last time we saw ANY of you girls, was when you blew us up!"

Blossom and Buttercup briefly looked at each other, before breaking out into fits of laughter. Bubbles, meanwhile, was staring at their blond sibling—Boomer quickly caught her looking at him and shyly turned away.

"That's a good one Brick." Blossom laughed. "Maybe my attack did some damage to your head after all!"

"Are you girls stupid or something?" Butch said, "Mojo made us a few days ago!"

The girls tried seeing through their expressions; trying to catching even a glimpse of sarcasm—but were shocked to see that the boys looked entirely sincere.

"Wait, so you're telling us that you were just created by Mojo Jojo?" Blossom said.

"Yes." Brick nodded.

"And Him didn't bring you back a few months ago?" Buttercup joined.

"Who?" Butch asked.

**HIM!**

"But who is **HE**?" Brick asked.

The girls' faces turned pale, as they realized that the boys had absolutely no idea what they were talking about—Blossom started fearing the worst.

"So your not... Them?" Blossom's eyes were giving away her fear.

"Wait, now I'm confused, is it **Him** or **Them**?" Butch scratched his head.

"No, I mean, you're not The Rowdyruff boys..." Blossom said.

The boys turned to face each-other, thinking that the girls completely lost their minds. Blossom, however, was searching for the right words to say.

"Guys, there's another group of Rowdyruff boys living here..." Blossom said.

The Rowdyruff boys stared at Blossom, with their mouths hanging. _What the hell is wrong with that girl?_

"Blossom, you might wanna go home and rest for a while..." Brick laughed nervously.

"They've been living outside of Townsville for months now," Blossom said.

Brick's mouth closed and twisted, as his expression turned from confusion to utter frustration.

"Listen Blossom, this isn't funny..." Brick glared at Blossom. "Whatever game you're playing right now, I suggest you stop. Got it?"

"Hey, we don't want to believe it too!" Buttercup said, "But it sure looks like it"

Brick looked at his brothers, before turning his head back to Blossom—looking at her with a sharp look in his eyes.

"If we find out you were lying to us," Brick said, "Then I swear Blossom, we will hurt you.

"**Badly.**.."

Brick nodded to his brothers—who were no less confused than he was—and the boys took off to Mojo's volcano observatory, leaving the girls behind.

The girls simply stayed silent, watching the boys leave. Bubbles took a quick glance towards where Boomer was hiding, but he was no longer there.

...

**Part IV - Family Reunion**

...

Boomer heard everything he needed to hear, and despite what his brothers did to him, he still had the urge to tell them. He felt something though; something building up inside him.

He couldn't place his finger on it...

Boomer rushed to the old, worn-out cabin, where he used to live; not at all worried about the reactions of his brothers.

He pounded on the door as fast as he could.

Brick opened the door, with his usual smirk on his face. "Butch, guess who's here!"

"Brick listen there's no time for this!" Boomer slammed the door.

"What are you talking about, Boom-Brain?"

"Yeah, what's up?" Butch approached the door.

Boomer told his brothers about Mojo's Rowdyruff boys, and how he "stumbled" on to them, while they were fighting the Powerpuff girls. Boomer carefully made sure to omit the part where he and Bubbles were spending the whole day getting to know each other.

"So those sissies were fighting some phonies that looked like us?" Brick crossed his arms.

"Yeah. I needed to tell you even though you kicked me out and..."

"And you think we're gonna let you in?" Butch asked, smirking.

Boomer was shocked.

"Yeah Boomer, who said you could come back?"

_That was the final straw._

Those feelings that he felt ever since he started talking to Bubbles—were finally erupting out of Boomer like molten lava out of a volcano. Gritting his teeth, Boomer grabbed Brick by the his shirt and drew him closer.

"Now you listen to me!" Boomer yelled, "I am sick and tired of you treating me like dirt! I am just as much of a Rowdyruff boy as you and Butch!"

Brick and Butch were shocked.

"And I don't need you to tell me what I am, and what I'm not!

"Because I don't care what you think of me anymore!" Boomer finished.

Boomer let go of Brick; that outburst admittedly left Boomer shaking a bit. Brick stared at his brother with a blank expression, before smiling and pulling Boomer into a hug—lightly patting him on the back.

"Welcome back, dude."

...

The night finally arrived, and everyone including the boys were fast asleep. Only Boomer was still awake—lying on the bed and staring at the ceiling.

As he drifted to sleep, his lips slowly broke into a smile. _"Thanks Bubbles..."_

_..._

_..._

* * *

**Thanks for reading so far, guys.**

**Now, something regarding the story: The next chapters are going to head into a much darker territory, and will be dealing with more personal stuff.**

**I already know how the story's going to end, and the turn for the dark and serious is entirely necessary.**

**It'll probably take longer to finish, but I'll do my best. :-)**


	7. Chapter 7

**_Hi guys,_**

**_I'm back with another chapter! Thank you for your feedback/reviews so far._**

**_Enjoy. _**

**_P.S. When the two sets of RRBs fight, the new boys will be addressed by their last name (Brick Jojo, Boomer Jojo and Butch Jojo.)  
_**

* * *

...

_**Part I - Prologue**_

...

Nothing made Mojo Jojo happier after a long and tedious day, than tucking himself in his soft and warm covers, as the moon shined through his window and onto his bed. In his dreams he would often see himself sitting on a high throne, with the citizens of Townsville worshiping him—only to wake up to a harsh and disappointing reality.

"Mojo!"

Mojo's eyes swung open, as he heard loud pounding on the door. Untangling himself from his covers, he dragged his feet towards the door. _Stupid, good for nothing kids!_

The pounding on the door grew louder and louder. "Mojo, open this door right now!"

"I'm coming!" Mojo yelled, as he made his way to the entrance. As he opened the door he saw his three boys looking at him with daggers in their eyes.

"Mojo, you've got some explaining to do..."

Giving the boys a tired look, Mojo yawned and scratched his back before responding. "Can't this minor nuisance wait until tomorrow?"

"No."

Brick grabbed Mojo by his worn-out, striped pajamas and violently threw him on the couch. Butch dug inside the monkey's drawer and took out a roll of duct tape, which he gave to his red-headed brother. Brick quickly wrapped the tape around the couch, trapping Mojo inside.

"What is the meaning of—

Boomer shoved one of Mojo's socks inside his mouth before he could finish his sentence. Brick used the remaining tape to make sure he won't spit the sock out.

"Now Mojo, we let you talk when I finish, got it?" Brick said.

Mojo tried to wiggle his way out of the couch, but the thick tape prevented him from moving any part of his body except his head. He merely nodded.

"Mojo, a little bird told us that we aren't the only Rowdyruff boys in town..."

Brick drew closer, giving Mojo an intimidating stare. "Is that true?"

Trying to speak with the white piece of cloth in his mouth, Mojo's words came out as nothing but muffled whispers. Brick yanked the tape sharply out of his mouth, which made Mojo tear up and utter a quick yelp.

"Yes..."

"And you didn't tell us because?" Butch asked.

Mojo's eyes moved from Brick, who gave him a spine-chilling stare, to Butch who began pulling his sleeves up, ready to pound him—apparently, no matter what his answer would be. A grin spread across his face.

"Because who ever made those boys was an ignorant, misinformed fool."

"What do you mean, Mojo?" Brick asked.

Mojo told the boys everything about Him, and his encounter with the demon days ago. He repeated everything Him told him word-by-word, and watched with delight as his sons' mouth's grew wider and wider with each passing sentence.

...

The boys were silent. Without uttering a single word they've unwrapped Mojo from the couch, and watched as he stretched his arms in relief.

"Mojo, can we talk to each other in private..." Brick said.

"Of course boys."

As Mojo went to his room, he looked over his shoulder with a mischievous grin on his face. The boys shuffled into their room and Brick climbed on his bed; blankly staring at the ceiling. His brothers looked at him, waiting for him to make any sense out of the situation.

"Guys," He spoke, "We can't let this go on...

"We need to put an end to this once and for all..."

Boomer had a suspicion where his brother was heading with this, but wanted to hear it from him.

"What do you mean, _once and for all_?"

Pushing himself off the bed, Brick walked towards his brothers. His eyes were giving away a look of uncertainty. "I mean... technically they're not real so...

_"We're not doing anything wrong, right?"_

His brothers' eyes widened. Butch was actually surprised to hear something like this from Brick; after all, he showed nothing but hesitation when it came to violence in the past few day. Boomer, meanwhile, was even more surprised than Butch.

"But Brick we—

"But nothing Boomer!" Brick launched himself towards his brother. "We can't let those freaks stay here!"

"Yeah Boomer. No one deserves the title of the Rowdyruff boys but us!" Butch said proudly.

Boomer hung his head. "I guess..."

"Remember Boomer, they aren't real so... no harm done..." Brick said, sounding not entirely convinced himself.

The boys slipped out of their dirty clothes, before climbing onto their separate beds. Without uttering a single word, the boys shut their eyes and tried falling asleep; their minds still attempting to make sense out of this confusing mess.

...

**_Part II - A Short Visit_**

...

The sun rose above the Utoniums' home, but the girls barely bat an eyelash. The kindergarten was being repaired, after the Rowdyruff boys reduced the building to ashes, so the girls were still in bed.

The only sound that got the girls' attention was the sharp sound of pebbles hitting against their window.

"Buttercup see who it is..." Blossom said, her eyes closed.

Buttercup groaned and tossed around in her covers. "Go see for yourself..."

"Okay..." Blossom said, "Bubbles go see who it is..."

Bubbles stuck her head from underneath the covers. She squinted as the rays of light pierced through her eyes and dragged her feet to the window. Rubbing her eyes, she noticed Boomer standing outside of the house, waving to her.

Bubbles tiptoed her way downstairs, making sure not to awaken her family. As she opened the door a wide smile spread across her face, and her heart jumped.

"Hi, Boomer!"

" Hi—Uh... Bubbles..." Boomer smiled shyly as he saw Bubbles walk towards him, still in her blue nightgown.

"What?" She stared at him for a moment, before flushing. "Oh sorry, I got too jumpy after seeing you outside."

"That's okay, I'm just glad you came to the window and not your sisters." Boomer peaked around, making sure nobody except them was around.

"What if they did?"

"Uhh... I'd hide in a bush and try again." Boomer scratched his head.

Bubbles giggled. "You're so silly sometimes, Boomer!"

"Shut up..." He playfully nudged her with his shoulder and smiled. "You came didn't you?"

"You wanted to see me?"

The air suddenly felt heavy as Boomer remembered why he came in the first place. He said that ONE word a hundred times before he came here, but seeing Bubbles made it much more difficult. "I just wanted to say...

"Thanks..."

He felt all his energy flushing out of him in a split second, but he went on. "My brothers took me back in..."

...

"I told them I don't care what they think of me anymore..."

Bubbles smiled and wrapped her arms around Boomer, pulling him into a tight hug. "You're welcome, Boomer..."

Boomer couldn't help but gaze into Bubbles' eyes. There was something about them that made his breath stop and his skin shiver. Boomer felt his face turn red and quickly pulled away from her.

"B-Bubbles, I better go before my brothers wake up..."

Bubbles felt a blush creeping onto her face as well. "Oh yeah, g-go ahead Boomer, and you're welcome..."

Both clumsily waved to each other and Boomer flew back to his home.

...

**_Chapter III - The Fight for Life_**

...

Boomer's smile spread from ear-to-ear as he flew towards home, and his face was burning red. Making his way inside the hut, the wooden door squeaked, but nobody seemed to notice. He quietly sneaked into his room, ready to sleep for a few more hours before his brothers wake up.

...

"Boomer, wake up!"

Boomer eyes swung open, as he heard his red-headed brother's voice calling him roughly fifteen minutes later. _Oh, come on!_

"Come on dude, let's go have some fun!" Brick said.

Between meeting Bubbles and suddenly being awakened by his brother, Boomer was anything but tired by this point. He quickly leaped out of bed and prepared himself.

"Okay," Boomer said, "By the way, where's Butch?"

"Still sleeping..." Brick grinned.

The boys made their way into the living room along the creaking, wooden floor. They immediately noticed Butch sleeping on the sofa and slobbering the cushion with his drool. _How come I didn't see him when I came in?_

"Hey Butch?" Brick whispered, "Wake up..."

Butch tossed around while mumbling under his own breath. "_Leave me alone __Buttercup..._"

"Butchie..." Brick playfully pinched his cheek. The two boys did their best not to burst into laughter.

"Wakie-wakie..."

Butch let out another moan before turning his head away. Brick simply shrugged his shoulders and walked away; returning seconds later with a rusty kettle in his hand.

"Are you sure you don't wanna wake up, Butchie?" Brick whispered in his ear.

Only Butch's loud snores were heard. Boomer was swelling up like a balloon, while Brick's grin grew wider. "Okay then..."

Butch felt a gush of freezing water hit his face. He tumbled down on the floor and his eyes spread wide open, as he saw Brick with a kettle filled with cold water, and Boomer rolling on the floor and laughing with tears in his eyes.

...

"**W****HAT THE HELL IS YOUR PROBLEM?!**"

...

Brick dropped to the floor and laughed hysterically along with Boomer. Their angry, wet brother looked at them with piercing eyes. It took both of them a while to calm down.

"Come on dude," Brick said, "Let's go have some fun in the city!"

Butch grinned at the idea of causing more mischief around the city. "Great, I could use some morning exercise!"

"But what do we do, Brick?" Boomer said, though immediately regretting it, since opening his mouth usually resulted in him getting a smack from one of his brothers.

_Great,_ w_hy do I always have to open my big, __fat mouth..._

"I don't know dude," Brick said, "We'll think of something when we get there..."

_Wait? That's it!?..._

"Now come on guys, I bet I can toss cars higher in the air than you can!"

"Oh you're on!"

Butch dashed after Brick into the city. Boomer soon caught up to them, but wasn't as enthusiastic about their plan as they were. In fact, his mind was still spinning around Bubbles; For some reason, her eyes constantly flashed in his head.

"Let's go there!" Brick pointed at the busy highway. "Plenty of cars to choose from."

"Yeah!" Butch picked up a car and flung it high into the air. The car quickly banished out of view along with the driver.

"Ha! Beat that!"

"Weak..." Brick grabbed a speeding truck by it's rear bumper; making the driver spill his burning, hot coffee on his pants. He picked the truck high up into the air and catapulted it into the sun. "Now _that's_ a proper throw!"

"Yo Boomer, it's your turn!"

"Wha...?" Boomer snapped out of his thoughts as he heard his brothers voice. "Oh, okay..."

He popped in front of a yellow cab and picked it up from the ground. The driver was lucky enough to jump out before he went off the ground. Not really thinking about it, Boomer tossed the cab aside as though it was a soft pillow.

"Ah, dude are you okay?" asked a concerned Brick.

"Yeah... why?"

"Well you threw the cab into a pet-shop..." Brick pointed at the cab poking out from the animal-shop across the street. The windows were shattered, and the animals were fleeing in fear.

"Not that I mind or anything..."

Boomer broke into an awkward smile. _Oops..._

"**Hey guys look**!" Butch pointed to three colored stripes flying towards them with the determination of a homing missile. "It's the Powerpuff girls!"

"Yeah—wait..." Before he could finish, Brick heard his rib cracking as a firm fist went through it. He didn't even have time to react before he was sent crashing into a wall with a well-placed kick to the gut.

As his body slid to the ground, Brick rubbed his head and opened his eyes. He quickly noticed his brothers lying next to him groaning in pain. Turning his head forward, his mouth opened and left hanging. _What the..._

"Guess Mojo wasn't pulling our leg, after all..." Brick Jojo said.

"And by the looks of it, they're cheap shots!" Butch Jojo looked at their counterparts with contempt in his eyes.

Brick Jojo turned to face his blond brother. "Boomer, remember what I told you yesterday?"

"Yeah..." Boomer said softly.

"Good. Now boys, you know the plan..."

The boys' eyes began glowing a darkly-red color. Usually the boys' laser-beams are shot at a rapid pace, not letting the enemy time to breathe. But they were prolonging it. _But why?_ Suddenly it hit the injured boys; they were going to blast them with one powerful shot at point blank.

Brick gasped in horror. "Guys split!"

The blasts tore through one side of the building and went through the other, creating huge openings on both sides, with smoke emitting from within. The blasts would have pierced through the boys' skin, had they not evaded them on time.

"Now where are they?" Brick Jojo struggled seeing past the smoke.

"Guys, they're on the rooftop!" Butch Jojo said.

The boys soared towards the rooftop where their counterparts waited, and prepared themselves for a fight.

"Alright guys, be ready for anything!" Brick ordered. "Whoever they are, they're not playing games with us."

"Got it!" Butch said with his usual determined, cold look.

Boomer's eyes followed the boys as they made their way to the rooftop. Their mere presence sent shivers down his spine. _Something's not right here..._

As Mojo's boys landed on the rooftop floor, their counterparts noticed something odd about them. Their eyes were filled with hatred and contempt. It was most noticeable in Butch, with his eyes fixed entirely on them and his teeth showing.

"Alright, who the heck are you guys?!" Brick said, stumbling a bit.

"Yeah!" Butch tried to keep his cool, but his usual twitch that came whenever he felt excited about a fight was now absent. "Who do you think you are, pretending to be us?!"

"We are the Rowdyruff boys..." Brick Jojo said.

"And you..." Butch Jojo advanced towards his counterpart and grabbed him by his shirt. "_Are NOT!_" His fist came crashing down Butch's cheek and sent flying to the ground.

Butch Jojo turned to his brother. "Brick, I'll go finish him off, okay?"

Brick nodded, while still glaring at the two terrified boys. "Go ahead..."

Brick's eyes widened as the boy flew down to the ground with the utter intention of destroying his brother. He felt his heart pounding and hurried to help him—only to be stopped by a sharp and threatening voice.

"Don't you even think about it!" Brick Jojo gave his counterpart a bloodcurdling stare. "Boomer, you deal with your counterpart okay?"

"Fine..."

"Now as for you." Brick Jojo looked at his counterpart. "I suggest you take this seriously.

"Your life's at risk here..."

Brick felt nervous but regained his composure. "You sure talk big. Why don't you show me what you got, you phony!"

"Gladly..." He dashed towards Brick and landed an uppercut to his jaw. Brick's bones made a cracking noise, but that didn't stop him from elbowing his counterpart in the gut—forcing him to bend down. Brick Jojo gritted his teeth and charged towards his counterpart, pushing him along with himself off the rooftop. Grabbing him by the waist he managed to break his own fall by landing on him.

Brick Jojo flipped out of the way, letting his counterpart get up from the ground. "Come on! I expect better from somebody who _claims_ to be me!"

Brick stumbled as he forced himself to get up from the ground. Wiping the dirt off his face, his lips broke into a smirk. "Don't write me off just yet."

"I'm waiting..."

Brick propelled himself towards his counterpart and breathed in all the air he could muster. Letting the air out of his lungs, Brick released a scorching, bright flame towards his unimpressed counterpart.

"Oh please..." Brick Jojo rolled his eyes before kicking open a fire hydrant sticking from the ground right next to him. The water came splashing towards the flame, easily extinguishing it.

"Anything else?"

Brick gritted his teeth and resorted back to his usual strategy of attacking head-on. flying forward, Brick felt a sharp pain, as his counterpart yanked him by his long, spiky hair and swung him around. Hearing his screams of agony, Brick Jojo finally released him and watched as he came crashing down the sidewalk.

"Shame..." Brick Jojo said mournfully, before sprinting towards his counterpart with a strong and precise blow to the spine, causing him to stop breathing for a few seconds and flinching in pain.

…

Butch, meanwhile, was having an even more difficult time with his counterpart, who was entirely convinced that his rival wasn't even real to begin with—this thought allowed Butch Jojo to embrace his aggressive side to the fullest, without having to think about the consequences.

"Hope you're ready to get yourself killed by a _real _Rowdyruff boy!" Butch Jojo shot a glare so intimidating that even his, usually, psychotic counterpart felt nervous.

"You don't scare me!" Butch said, though his hands were shaking slightly.

"Then let's fix that shall we?"

Butch Jojo grinned before throwing himself onto his counterpart. Pinning him to the ground with his knees, he proceeded to punch Butch relentlessly in the face. Blood gushed out of his mouth as he felt every punch hit him like a hammer; he felt bones cracking and his skin bruising.

"Is that all you g-got?!" Butch said, spitting out one of his teeth from his mouth. "I had chihuahua bites more painful than you..."

Butch's persistence angered his counterpart. He finished his barrage of hits with a savage kick to his ribcage, nearly breaking it—surprisingly, Butch was still fully conscious, despite having great difficulty breathing.

…

The two blond-haired boys dashed from building to building, avoiding each others' waves of laser-beams. Their fight was less intense then those of their brothers, considering one of them still had a _particular_ Powerpuff girl on his mind.

"Come on, stand still already!" Boomer Jojo chased after his fleeing counterpart, trying to hit him with his beams. _This is stupid!_

Boomer finally stopped in his tracks and landed on one of the rooftops. His hands sparked as he clamped them together. Seeing his rival flying towards him, he aimed his hands and released a powerful current of electricity his way.

Seeing the current, Boomer Jojo plunged himself downward, narrowly avoiding the attack. His counterpart waited for him to show up but nothing happened.

"Now where is he?" His eyes zipped left and right.

"Here..." Boomer Jojo grabbed his counterpart shoulders from behind, and released his own current of electricity through his body.

Boomer felt his entire body trembling, as he fell face-first onto the rooftop floor. His hair stood on end and his face got covered in black soot. After a moment, he made the effort to lift himself on his feet.

"Come on dude, just make it easier on yourself..." Boomer Jojo snapped, but for some reason his counterpart wasn't listening to him.

Even when his life was in grave danger, Boomer couldn't stop thinking about Bubbles no matter how hard he tried. Her face kept appearing in his thoughts seemingly at random—even his counterpart was beginning to notice something wrong with him.

"Ahh, dude?"

…

…

"DUDE!"

Boomer finally snapped out of his trance and looked at his confused counterpart, with his mouth still hanging open.

"Are you okay?"

"Oh yeah, it's nothing..." Boomer said, as he closed his mouth.

"You looked lost there for a second..."

"It's nothing!" Boomer said, slightly irritated by his counterpart's concern.

"Hey Boomer what are you two blabbering about!" Brick Jojo yelled from a distance. "Finish him already and come down here!"

"Oh right..." Boomer Jojo turned to his counterpart and smiled sheepishly at him. "Ah, sorry dude..."

"Wait wha—!" Before he could finish, his counterpart gave him a light push, sending him dropping to the ground. During the whole time, Boomer failed to notice that he was standing right on the very edge of the tall building.

_No fair..._

As the three boys collapsed to the ground, the shadows of their counterparts surrounded him. Butch Jojo had a wide grin on his face while his brothers simply fixed their eyes on the helpless Ruffs.

"Alright boys, one final attack should do it," Brick Jojo turned to his brothers. "let's go for the _Cluster Power-Bombs_."

"Alright! I've been dying to try it!" Butch jumped in excitement.

Boomer simply nodded.

The boys left their counterparts to lie on the ground, as they soared high into the skies above. Flying high enough they each began glowing an intense color of red, green and blue. Butch and Boomer patiently waited for their brother to give the command.

"_Alright guys, three, two, one... Go!_"

The boys each grabbed their legs and somersaulted their way back to the ground. Their bodies quickly took a spherical, bomb-like shape, as they were plunging faster and faster towards the Rowdyruff boys below.

The Rowdyruff boys waited. It was only a matter of seconds before their counterparts would reach the ground. The boys each closed their eyes—having lost in the fight—and waited for the attack to wipe them out. The deafening bang was the last thing the boys heard.

_It's over..._

_..._

**_Chapter IV - A Father's Word_**

_..._

_Where are we? _The boys heard the sound of a fire crackling and the wails of people echoing in the distance. They slowly opened their eyes and looked around; seeing bumpy, red walls and sharp spikes sticking out of the ceiling._ Are we dead?_

"_Hello boys..._"

The boys lifted their eyes from the floor and saw their demonic father staring at them with his usual cunning grin. _Pops?_

"Oh boys, you disappoint me..." His voice had a slight sarcastic tone.

"What are you talking about?" Brick tried moving his body but could neither move or even feel any part of it. "What the hell is this?!"

"I see Mojo just couldn't resist bringing them back, could he?" Him said

"Why can't we move, Him?!" Brick said.

"Yeah!" Butch attempted jerking his feet, but his body didn't listen to him. "And who are those freaks that tried to kill us!"

Him slithered past the boys. It brought him pleasure seeing his boys in this state of utter helplessness.

"Oh, them?" He smirked.

"Those are Mojo's boys," Him said. "Or rather, _the real __Rowdyruff boys_..."

"What are you talking about?!" Butch felt his chest still hurting from his fight, and his body paralyzed completely.

"We're the real Rowdyruff boys!"

"On the contrary, boy." Him brought his claws closer to the black-haired boy. "They are in fact, the boys that were destroyed by the Powerpuff girls kisses."

"No they aren't!" Brick said, "We remember it happening to us!"

"Oh, but how vividly do you remember your fight with the girls before they destroyed you?"

The boys tried remembering their fight with the girls. However the only thing they could recall was a small, vile prison cell and the girls kissing them on the cheek. Nothing in between. As a matter of fact they could barely remember how they acted or even how they looked like.

"You changed so much since I've brought you back," Him said, "But you barely noticed, haven't you boys?"

"But we were exactly the same..." Suddenly a memory flashed before Brick's eyes. He recalled looking exactly like the Rowdyruff boy he was fighting just a moment ago_. Hey, what's wrong with you girls? You're supposed to start crying when we hit you!_

Brick felt his heart stopping for a split second. "But...But who are we then?"

"You are the Rowdyruff boys as I imagined them. A blank slate that I dug my _lovely _claws into!" Him snapped his sharp claws.

"Shut up..." Something inside Butch snapped. He felt his anger pouring out of him, as he slowly began taking control over his body.

"I don't believe you!"

Him watched the black-haired boy in amusement as he struggled to pull himself from the floor. Barely standing on his feet.

"**I've had enough of your games, you overgrown sea-food**!"

Butch charged at Him with incredible speed, which didn't seem to startle the demon one bit. As Butch approached the demon he extended his hand and firmly squeezed Him's neck.

"Ha gotcha!" Butch said proudly, "Any last words, before I finish you off for good?"

Butch heard no reply.

"I said an-" Butch gasped as he realized that instead of holding the demon in his clutches, he was strangling his own brother, Brick. He quickly loosened his grip, letting Brick drop to the floor.

_What the hell?!_

"Butch, what the heck is wrong with you!" Boomer demanded to know, while looking at his coughing red-headed brother.

"_But... I thought I__-I__ was __strangling__ Him..._"

"No." Boomer glared at his brother. "You got up all of a sudden and grabbed Brick by the throat!"

"B-But how...?"

"Didn't you hear me boy?" Him chuckled. "You are part of my imagination. And I have complete control over you and your brothers!"

"Brick I'm sorry.." Butch apologized to his brother before turning his head towards Him. "Listen Him, I swear you will pay for this!"

Him suddenly emerged behind Butch with his claw clenching his throat. "No you listen, you insignificant brat!

"In case you didn't get it through that little, thick skull of yours." Him snatched the screaming boy up into the air. "I have complete control over you!"

"And I could kill you and your brothers without even as much as lifting my arm!" He violently threw him back to the floor.

Butch and his brother's were terrified—it was the first time they ever felt this way. Sweat dripped from their body, and they felt as though a massive stone was dropped on their chests, preventing them from breathing.

"Now boys, I do hope you'll try harder next time and won't disappoint me..."

Him's eyes narrowed as he drew closer. "Right...?"

The boys were shaking in fear. Their tongues were tied and they could only stare at their father—not daring to move their eyes away from him.

"Alright, now off you go!" Him waved his claw, and the boys disappeared in a red, hazy fog. Him was left alone in his lair.

...

Him let out a sigh. "Oh dear, it sure is tough being a father..."

Him lazily fell on his chair and gazed at the screens, which he used to watch over the citizens of Townsvile. Moving his eyes from one screen to another, Him noticed something that caught his attention.

"_Hey, aren't there people everywhere in the park?"_

"_Don't worry, we'll think of something."_

Him reached for his remote control and pressed the fast-forward button, flipping through the day that Boomer and Bubbles spent together.

"_Hey none of us like you girls that way!"_

"_Oh, of course you do!"_

Him pressed the button again. His lips were twisting into a wicked smile.

_You're so silly sometimes, Boomer!_

_Shut up! You came didn't you?_

A grin spread across the demon's demented face, as he turned off the screens and pushed himself off the chair.

**_..._**

**_Oh Bubbles, you have no idea how much you're going to help me soon._**

_..._

* * *

**_Thanks for reading :) _**

**_What do you think so far? Hope it wasn't too confusing/messy._**


	8. Chapter 8

...

**_This was going to be a short chapter, but I just kept on writing and writing, and it turned out to be my longest chapter by far..._**

**_Funny how these things work sometimes..._**

**_By the way, this chapter doesn't have Mojo's boys in it; just throwing it out there. _**

...

* * *

...

**Part I - Prologue**

...

The boys kept telling themselves that it was all a really bad dream. _Is this true? Why us? What now? _Questions came and went like cars speeding along a busy highway, as the boys found themselves cast into the dark, cold forest outside of Townsville by their demon-father, Him. As the red fog disappeared the boys lay on the ground, barely moving.

"Guys, are you okay?" asked Brick.

"Yeah Brick..." Boomer picked himself up from the ground, dusting off the dirt from his blue shirt. "_Are you okay Butch?_" he asked.

"Oh shut up, Boomer..." Butch said, spitting out yet another bloody tooth out of his mouth. His clothes were torn, his hair was a mess and his body was bruised from top to bottom. "You're lucky your fight was so easy!"

"Heck, he just pushed you off the building, I mean how stupid can you get!"

Brick immediately felt the need to stand up for his "younger" brother. "Oh come on _Butchie_, maybe you're just getting old. Right Boomer?" He winked at Boomer.

The two shared a quick smile, while Butch crossed his arms and angrily mumbled something to himself. The smiles, however, soon faded from their faces and were replaced with a look of sadness and regret. This definitely wasn't a laughing matter for them.

"Guys... I'm sorry" Brick said softly, "I should have realized something was wrong..."

"It's okay Brick..." Boomer tried forcing himself to smile.

"No it's not..." Butch slammed his fist on the ground and dug his fingers inside the gray soil; his bare teeth showed the anger on his face. "All this time we were puppets...

"And that _freak_ was pulling the strings, making us dance for him!"

Boomer stared emptily into the open space, seeing the trees moving along with the whistling wind. He knew he shouldn't be crying, especially not near his brothers, but he couldn't help himself. Tears rolled down his cheeks, swaying away with the strong wind. "But we're still real... _right_?"

"Yeah Boomer," Brick's hand tapped on his brothers shoulder. For once he felt sympathy for his brother. "_We are..._" he gave him a reassuring smile.

"So what do we do now, guys?" Butch asked.

"I don't know, Butch..." Brick felt his body collapse to the ground. He never noticed how beautiful and peaceful this place was during the night. Feeling the wind brushing up against his face, he didn't want this moment to ever end.

"Hey guys..." Boomer's voice was so weak that even the crawling insects seemed to make a louder sound that he did. "Can I tell you something?"

"What is it?" Brick said calmly, transfixed by the view before him.

"_Promise me, you won't get angry?_"

"_Promise.._" Brick said. His mind was clearly in a different place though, not moving his eyes from where they are.

"What is it Boomer?" Butch had a sneaking suspicion that he wasn't going to like what his brother has to say.

"Remember when you guys kicked me out?" He paused for a second, watching the reactions of his brothers. They nodded. "I ran into Bubbles, and—

"Wait the Powerpuff girl?" Butch jumped.

"Yes..." Boomer said, stepping away slightly from Butch."She's the one who made me step up to you guys, and now we're friends..." He smiled nervously.

Butch froze in place. His mouth left hanging and his eyes were fixed on his brother. Brick meanwhile, looked at the ground with a mournful expression on his face.

Immediately though, Butch found his voice. "So you made friends with a Powerpuff girl?!" Butch felt betrayed by his brother. "Boomer, you—!

"Butch, shut up..." Brick interrupted his brother before he could throw a temper tantrum on Boomer.

"Go on Boomer."

"Well, I was thinking," Boomer spoke after Butch cooled down a little. "Maybe we could go ask them for help. I mean, their dad is a really smart scientist so—

"Ha! That girl really did a number on you!" Butch sneered. "Imagine us asking the Powerpuff girls for help! That would be the day!"

"...You think he can help?" Brick asked.

"Brick?!" Butch was shocked. How could his brother even consider something like this? Butch knew that they were in a desperate situation, but they still had their pride and reputation to preserve.

"I think so..." Boomer said.

Something shattered inside Brick the second their father told them the truth. A lot of the things that brought him joy and meaning in life suddenly seemed not so important anymore—causing mayhem around the city, fighting the Powerpuff girls, ordering his brothers around—all those things felt like a waste of time.

"Then we'll go to their house tomorrow..." he said,

"Brick are you completely insane?!" Butch leaped from the ground. "We can't—

"Do you want to die Butch?" Brick gave his brother a piercing look. "Because I _sure as hell_ don't...

"And if staying alive means we'll have to embarrass ourselves in front of them," Brick said, "Then so be it, Butch!"

Butch decided not to argue with his brother and grunted. "Whatever..."

The boys gazed at each other for, _what seemed like_, forever. They could only hear the rustling of the leaves and the sound of the whistling wind as it brushed against their hair. The rest of the forest was almost eerily quiet. Suddenly, Butch let out a smirk as he looked at his blond brother.

"So our little Boomer has a girlfriend now?" Butch teased.

Shut up! She's not my girlfriend!" Boomer turned his head away. He tried hiding the red blush that has now spread all over his face—failing miserably.

"Well Boomer I personally think your crazy," Brick finally turned his head towards Boomer. "But I _suppose_ you knew what you were doing..."

"Maybe we should let her take your place." Butch grinned. "Since _she's _the one who made you stand up to Brick and everything."

"Hey!" Boomer almost squealed. "I'm not—

"Lighten up, bro..." Butch nudged his brother playfully, which did cause him to stumble a bit. "_I'm joking_." He gave his brother a genuine smile.

"Alright guys it's getting cold outside." Brick rubbed his shoulders, slightly shivering from the cold wind. "Let's go home, I wanna sleep after all this..."

"Yeah I'm beat..." Butch's body was still sore from the battle with Mojo's boys.

"Remember Butch, I'm going to _hate_ myself forever for doing this." Brick paused for a second. "But it's our only shot..."

_I hope..._

...

**Part II - Forgiveness**

...

Blossom, the bossy but _well-meaning_ leader of the Powerpuff girls, had _one _simple belief in her life: _People don't change—_the good will _always_ remain good, evil will _always_ stay evil and Mitch Mitchelson will _always _try to set the class hamster on fire or launch it into space—which is incidentally what happened today in kindergarten.

"I sure hope for Twiggy's sake that he wont have to deal with jerks like Mitch next year..." Buttercup said exhaustively.

"He probably will, considering the city we live in_..._" Blossom shut the door behind her. "I think Miss. Keane should _really _consider giving him away—

"_Blossom!_" Bubbles gasped.

"_Next_ year Bubbles." Blossom finished.

"Oh... I guess..." Bubbles said. The thought of not seeing Twiggy next year made her upset.

The girls made their way upstairs into their room. Besides a few toys that Bubbles had scattered around, the room itself was unbelievably tidy, and almost _bizarrely_ pink; even the Professor felt his pulse racing whenever he found himself inside.

"Girls, I was thinking..." Blossom climbed onto their bed. "We've been fighting the Rowdyruff boys for a few months now, and we _barely_ had any luck beating them...

"And then these new guys came into the picture..." Blossom went on. "Did you notice anything _particularly_ odd about them?"

"Well I noticed that Butch can pack a _mean_ punch when he's using his brain." Buttercup flinched, remembering the whirlwind attack.

"Well that too," Blossom said, "But did you get the feeling like they were just fooling around with us? In a way almost being _nice_ to us?"

"No, he was a jerk!" Buttercup sneered. "But less of a jerk than the other Butch."

Bubbles and Buttercup immediately recognized what they saw next. Blossom had that infamous look on her face whenever some brilliant idea enters her mind. Her sisters could almost see a flickering light-bulb hanging over her red bow, and Bubbles didn't like it.

"Well then, I thought that maybe we could get Mojo's boys to help us..." Blossom smirked.

"What do you mean, _help_ us?" Buttercup scratched her head.

"I mean we hit two birds with one stone," Blossom said, "We get the Rowdyruff boys to help us defeat Him's boys, and we convince them to fight _along side us_!"

"_What?!_" Her sisters yelled in unison.

"But Blossom, we..." Bubbles protested but was interrupted by Blossom.

"But what, Bubbles?" Blossom asked. "I thought you, of all people, would like the idea of an alliance with the boys the most."

Bubbles herself didn't mind an alliance with the boys. However she was horrified with the idea of teaming up with them for the sole purpose of trying to beat Him's boys—especially since Boomer would be involved—but she couldn't let her sisters know this, and simply nodded quietly.

"Now wait just a second Blossom!" Buttercup jumped. "I do _not _want these losers around us!

"We're the superheroes here _not _them!"

"Oh come on Buttercup! Don't you think that we could use some help around Townsville? Blossom said, "_Besides__,__ I think we could learn a lot from each other!_" her eyes gleamed from the possibilities.

"But..."

"And you'll have someone who can challenge you, without trying to destroy you." Blossom finished.

"Okay Okay, you made your point!" Buttercup yelled, "Jeez, Blossom if I didn't know any better, I'd say you have a _crush_ on one of them." She could tell who it was, too.

"W-what?!" Blossom stumbled. "I do not have a crush on any one of them! _That's ridiculous_!" But her wide smile and the color of her cheeks said otherwise.

"I just think it's an opportunity to gain new allies that will aid us in fighting crime,_nothing more_!" She said in an overly-protective manner.

"_Girls, can you get the door please, I'm a little busy here!_" The Professor's voice came from the kitchen.

Making their way downstairs the girls' eyes immediately caught black smoke coming from the kitchen; the smell indicated that what was being made inside was anything _but _food. As they each peeked into the kitchen they saw the Professor stumbling from one side of the kitchen to the other with a recipe clenched in one hand and some _weird-looking_ ingredient in the other.

The girls approached the door and opened it; Blossom's and Buttercup's mouths quickly dropped to the floor.

"_THE ROWDYRUFF BOYS!_"

The boys were standing at the Powerpuff girls' doorway. The girls instantly noticed something _odd_ about them; they looked different. Brick's usually cocky smirk was nowhere to be found and his face lost it's sharp edge. Butch looked frustrated, as usual, but avoided looking at the girls at all costs, with his arms crossed. Boomer smiled when he saw Bubble, but it was a weak smile—almost like a mask that hid a deep feeling of sorrow beneath.

"What are _you_ guys doing here?" Blossom glared at the boys.

Brick forced his face into a smile, though seeing Blossom made it especially difficult for him. "_Blossom..._" He made sure to say her name right. "What I'm about to say to you goes against _everything _the Rowdyruff boys stand for..."

"Does that include bad breath?" Buttercup mocked.

"Why you...!" Butch felt Brick's sharp elbow in his gut before he could finish.

"Like I was _saying_..." Brick's fake smile seemed even bigger now, making the girls slightly uncomfortable. "We came here because...

"we need your help..."

A deep silence fell on the entire house. The two groups had their eyes fixed on each other, not moving a muscle. Bubbles started thinking that the clock on the living-room wall seemed _awfully_ loud, suddenly, while Buttercup kept wondering why she couldn't hear the Professor struggling with the food in the kitchen anymore. After a while, Blossom broke the uncomfortable moment.

"Boys, let me make this clear for you...

"It's pretty simple, really," Blossom said, "You see, you can't make it your life's goal to destroy someone _time and time again_,and then expect them to help you when things go wrong."

"_BECAUSE THIS ISN'T HOW THIS WHOLE SWORN ENEMIES DEAL WORKS!_"

Brick pursed his lips in despair. His pride was about to take a serious nose-dive into a concrete road and eventually someone would have to scrape it off their shoe like a chewed-up bubblegum. His gut screamed at him not to do it, however, this time logic took over.

"I'm sorry for everything we did to you girls," he muttered. "We were _wrong_ to try and destroy you again and again..."

Blossom and Buttercup shared a wicked grin before fixing their gaze on the Rowdyruff boys; the red-headed girl was especially thrilled by, the once in a life time, opportunity.

"Sorry Brick but you'll have to try_ a __teensy__ bit_ harder..." Blossom said, before taking her eyes away from Brick. "And we want Butch and Boomer to apologize as well."

Butch jumped to protest but his leader gave him a cold look before he could he could say anything; Butch muttered a weak "_sorry..._" without even looking at the Powerpuff girls and with his arms still crossed. Boomer seemed genuinely sorry for what he did, judging by the tone of his voice tone and the way he looked at Bubbles.

"Happy?" Brick said, frowning at Blossom.

"Well, I don't know..." Blossom pretended to be deep in thought, before turning to Buttercup. "What do you think Buttercup? _Are__ we happy_?"

"_No Blossom_," Buttercup smirked, but tried to sound as innocent as possible. "I don't think they were _sincere enough_ with their apology."

The boys were extremely annoyed by this point.

"Hmm, let me think, let me think..." Blossom scratched her chin.

"_I know!_" The smile that spread across Blossom's face almost made Brick regret he thought of the whole idea in the first place.

"_We want you to beg for forgiveness!_"

The boys' mouth dropped. For Butch and Boomer this was a turning point; whether before, Boomer felt indifferent towards Bubbles' sisters and Butch reserved most of his hatred towards his counterpart, both felt like they could no longer stand Blossom. Meanwhile, Brick couldn't help but snicker at his counterpart's diabolical way of thinking—even though he still hated her.

"Alright, you win..." Brick sighed.

"_What?!_" Butch jumped. "No Brick, I won't even _think_ of doing it!"

Brick looked at his angry brother before speaking to her. "Blossom, can you and the girls let us talk for a second. We need to think about this..."

"Of course Brick," Blossom said, before making her way to the couch along with her sisters, grinning all the way through.

"_Brick what is wrong with you?!_" Butch threw his arms in a fit, but still kept somewhat quiet "Where's your dignity and your pride, man!"

"Yeah Brick I don't wanna beg, it's embarrassing!" Boomer said.

"_You're gonna let that bow-wearing freak boss you around?!_" Butch whispered.

Brick, meanwhile rolled his eyes before pulling both his brothers closer to him. "_Guys, shut up..._" He gave them a stern look.

"You may hate me now," Brick said, "but remember that we need their help if we _ever_ hope to get away from Him." His brothers were still giving him a cold look..

"Besides..." Brick smirked. "This could be our chance to find out what makes the girls _tick_, if you know what I mean..."

Butch felt as though his mind gave out a sharp yelp; his mouth twitched into a mischievous grin upon hearing Brick's plan. The girls wouldn't know what hit them after this. Boomer smiled as well, just because he could spend some time with Bubbles—though he still hated Blossom for making them do all those humiliating things.

"_Just bear with me guys..._" Brick turned back to the girls sitting on the couch, waiting for the boys' response.. "Alright Blossom we'll—

"_So you'll do it?_" Blossom darted in front of the boys in a flash, catching them by surprise. Buttercup and Bubbles followed her.

Brick let out another breath of air before replying. "Yes, we're gonna do as you say. As long as you help us afterwords!"

"Great!" Blossom said in her usual smug voice. "Though I must say, I can only _imagine_ how serious this must be, if you boys are willing to stoop so low."

"Whatever..." Brick said.

"Now boys, we want you each to get down on your knees and beg us to forgive you." Blossom ordered.

For Butch this was too much. He does not go down on his knees for anybody, _especially_ not for their stupid and annoying rivals; however Brick's sharp stare quickly made him comply. Boomer looked at Bubbles with a stare that screamed: _Get me out of this! _But no matter how much it pained her to see him suffer like this, Bubbles remained silent.

"Alright Brick, you first," Blossom said, "I promise I won't stretch it out for too long."

Brick glared at Blossom. He never thought that when she wanted to, Blossom could reach _his_ level of cruelty; though he admired her a little for that. He felt the weight of his body as he dropped on his knees. He did not like this one bit.

"Whenever your ready Brick..." Blossom smirked.

Brick felt his heart pounding, but he knew he needed to keep a cool head about this. "Bloss—I mean Powerpuff girls... I Brick, leader of the Rowdyruff boys _ask_ that you find it in your hearts to forgive us for all the horrible things that we've ever done to you...

_Come on dude, look honest! LOOK FREAKIN' HONEST!_

"I am down on my knees and I beg of you to help us _just this once_, despite all the times that we caused troubles in your lives."

"That was _beautiful_, Brick!" Blossom pretended to wipe a tear from her eye, though she was genuinely impressed. "You could be one hell of an actor with that kind of performance!"

"_Is that all..._" Brick's patience was running dry.

"Yes Brick, you _may_ rise!" Blossom joked. Brick walked back to where he was. "Now Butch, it's your turn..."

"Oh, this is going to be good..." Buttercup could barely contain her grin.

The look on Buttercup's face made Butch's eye twitch. Slouching his way forward he was mumbling something to himself. His eyes were fixed on the red-headed Powerpuff, giving her a sharp and threatening look. Blossom, however, was not impressed, and went on.

"Alright Butch. Anything you would like to say to us?" Blossom tried not provoking him to much, knowing his temper.

Butch once again glanced over at Brick, who only nodded, and began. "_I'm sorry..._

"_We can't hear you!_" Buttercup shouted with her hands over her mouth.

_I'm gonna kill her!_ Butch needed some time to think. Of all the boys, he hated the idea of apologizing to the girls the most. In fact, he honestly believed that they had nothing to apologize for in the first place. After all, it wasn't _their _fault the girls took this crime-fighting business so seriously.

"I'm sorry for trying to beat you to a bloody pulp over and over again..." Butch said, with his knees bent and his eyes fixed on the floor. He then mumbled to himself: "A_nd over, and over, and over, and over..."_

"...and?"

"And I _hope _you sissi..." Butch stopped after hearing Brick loudly clear his throat. "And I hope you _girls _will forgive us..."

Buttercup was savoring the moment. "_Anything else, Butch_?"

"_And we were wrong..._" Butch uttered through his clenched teeth.

Buttercup was clearly enjoying herself; seeing her strongest rival on his knees, begging for forgiveness and hating every single second of it, put a smile on her face. Blossom, meanwhile, saw Butch's narrow eyes looking at her and heard his brothers' soft chuckles behind him. Knowing that this was the best apology she could muster out of him, she let him stand up and walk away—once again mumbling something to himself.

"Okay so that's two," Blossom said, "That leaves you, Boomer..."

Boomer heard Bubbles muttering a soft "_I'm sorry_" to him next to her two satisfied sisters. He made his way towards Blossom with his head hanging low and his steps very sluggish. Unlike his brothers, Boomer did feel guilty for his actions, but having to beg made him feel very uncomfortable.

"_Okay, Boomer on your knees_," Blossom said, though the look in his eyes made her feel a little sorry for him. Boomer did as he was told. "Go on..."

"_I'm sorry for all the bad things I __did__..._" Boomer gazed at the floor.

"And?" Blossom said, making her blonde sister glare at her.

"A-And I didn't mean _any_ of those things." His eyes were starting to water. "I hope that...

"...that you can forgive me" he said, looking at Bubbles. "And I'll never do it again..."

"_Please help us..._"

Everybody in the room looked at the blue Rowdyruff boy. He looked as though he was trying his best not to start crying in front of everyone. Bubbles felt like tearing up as well, but knew that her sisters would not appreciate that. Blossom and Buttercup shared an uncomfortable look between each other and Blossom spoke up.

"Umm—okay Boomer..." she said, almost wanting to give the poor boy a hug. "You can go back now..."

Rubbing his teary eyes, Boomer made his way back to where his brothers stood; the two gave each other puzzled looks and simply shrugged their shoulders. While Bubbles already knew that, _like herself_, Boomer was a very emotional person, her sisters were taken aback by his reaction.

"Alright, we're done." Brick said, "Now are you going to hear us out? Or is there anything_ else_ you wanna make us do?" He glared at Blossom.

"Okay Brick you may come in and-

"Girls who's at the door? Dinner will be ready in five minutes!_" _The Professor said cheerfully from inside the kitchen.

"It's the Rowdyruff boys, Professor!" Blossom yelled. The Professor's response came in roughly after twenty seconds.

"_The Rowdyruff boys?_" His voice quivered.

The Professor carefully peaked his head outside of the kitchen and gasped, seeing the boys standing in the hallway. Seeing Blossom giving him a quick nod, he made his way towards the kids, fixing his tie and wiping the sweat from his brow. Brick and Butch simply stared at the tall scientist, while Boomer waved his hand at him shyly.

"What brings you here, boys?" asked the Professor.

"We came to talk to you," Brick said.

"To me?" The Professor asked, "What about?"

"Well we—

"They came because they need_ our _help, Professor!" Blossom cut her counterpart off, earning herself a sharp glare from him and his brothers.

"Well then, let's sit over for dinner and talk about it." the Professor said.

"Oh Professor, I don't think the boys are hungry." Blossom looked over at the boys, who were growing angrier with her by the minute.

"_Nonsense_ Blossom," The Professor smiled. "Now come on, there's enough food for everybody!"

The boys rushed towards the kitchen, followed slowly by the Professor and the girls. On the table was a large bowl of mashed potatoes and crunchy slices of a fried salmon on a wide plate. The boys, of course, never ate home-made meals of _any_ kind, but the smell of fried fish made their mouths water. Looking at the food in a way that even the Utoniums found odd, the boys yanked the slices of fish from the plate, and began mowing them down in an instant.

"Ahh, boys may I suggest you use a fork..." The professor innocently suggested, watching the boys making a mess of themselves and the table. The boys looked at him, raising their brows.

"What?" Butch asked, with piece of fish stuck to his face.

The Professor pointed at the silver forks on the table. The boys picked them up, examining them carefully. Butch poked the mash potatoes with the fork, _making sure the food wasn't alive_. Boomer tried putting the food in his mouth, but the fork kept dropping on the floor. Brick meanwhile, got the hang of it pretty quickly and gulped down his food.

"So boys, what brings you to this part of Townsville?" Professor asked, trying to sound as casual as possible.

"_I have no idea..."_ Butch muttered to himself.

"We _came_ here, because we need _you_ to help us," Brick said, "Apparently, Him tricked us and we're not _really_ real..."

The girls and the Professor spat out their food almost instantly. _Did he just say that they weren't real?_ It surprised them how casual Brick sounded when he said it. Blossom nearly chocked on her mashed potatoes, but finally spoke.

"What do you mean you aren't real?!" Blossom said, shocked. "Is this a joke?"

"Yeah! Those fights we've been having all this time seemed _pretty_ real to me!" Buttercup jumped.

"Well we thought so too," Brick said, putting a piece of fried fish in his mouth. "But it turns out that Him imagined us, _or something..._"

"And now he controls us—_HEY THIS IS PRETTY GOOD, POPS!_" Butch chewed on the crunchy piece of salmon.

"Why thank you, Butch!" Professor smiled. "I thought of making something more interesting, but that didn't go _exactly_ as I planned..." He remembered the mess and suffocating smoke in the kitchen just moments ago.

"And that's _Professor _to you, Butch..." Buttercup shot him a sharp look.

Butch glared at Buttercup, trying to say something with his mouth full. He instantly swallowed the food. "He's your dad _isn't he_?"

"Well yeah... so what?" Buttercup said.

"We call all dads '_pops_'—he's _your_ dad—therefore pops!" Butch said as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

The Professor and the girls gawked at the spiky-haired boy in utter confusion. Butch simply ignored them and tossed another piece of fish in the air before catching it with his mouth. His eyes grew wide then, as he felt a small fish-bone getting stuck in his throat, and started rolling on the floor trying to cough it out, almost turning blue—Blossom smacked her forehead stupidly in response.

"So can you help us?" Brick asked.

"Wait," Blossom interrupted. "So you're saying that all this time, you were just part of Him's imagination?"

"_Yes..._" Brick muttered between his teeth. "So can you do anything about this?" He asked the Professor.

The Professor scratched his chin before replying. "We'll, to make _any_ sort of progress, I will need a sample of your DNA..."

"Whatever," Brick said, rolling his eyes. "As long as it works..."

Without wasting any more time the Utoniums and the boys finished their meals, and the Professor led them into his lab below. He took out three empty syringes out of his drawer and pricked each of the boys in the arm, watching the syringes fill up with their blood. The boys walked out of the lab and went to "_bother_" their counterparts. Brick approached Blossom in the kitchen, who looked like she was eagerly waiting for him.

"So Brick," Blossom watched as he sat on a chair opposite to her. "Tell me exactly what happened to you, boys?"

"Like I said, Him screwed us over," Brick said, "we wouldn't be here, begging for your help otherwise."

"And you did it _wonderfully_!" Blossom said, jokingly.

"Can it, Blossom! If our lives weren't on the line, we would _never_ have came to this hole," Brick said, though admittedly, he liked the place a lot more than Fuzzy's hut.

After a few seconds of silence, Blossom finally decided to tell Brick what she _believed _he deserved to hear. Her words were going to sting Brick a lot, but for Blossom, this was an opportunity that was too good to pass; she wanted to say it ever since the boys came asking for their help.

"So tell me, Brick, how does it feel?"

"How does _what_ feel?" Brick asked, looking into her curious yet stern eyes.

"To know that you must rely on your enemies to keep you safe," Blossom said, "and doing everything we tell you to do in exchange..."

"Hey don't push it _girlie_!" Brick pounded his fist on the table. "This doesn't change anything between us, and you know it!"

Blossom, however, kept her calm. "But Brick, that's not what I'm _trying_ to say..." she said, "I mean that all of this is pretty funny, if you think about it."

_Pretty funny?! What part of this was funny to her? _The more Brick stayed in her house, the more layers of her personality he was starting to notice; some of these layers surprised him, but for the most part, he didn't like any of the things he was discovering.

"I just think it's a pretty interesting turn of events," Blossom couldn't contain a faint smile on her face. "_But I guess that's how karma works..._"

"No, it was just a matter of bad luck," Brick said angrily, "Him was pulling our strings from the very start!

"Well, _regardless,_ you took a huge risk coming here..." Blossom said.

"What do you mean, red?" Brick asked, and watched as her expression turned to that of anger and frustration.

"_Wake up Brick!_" Blossom jumped. "We don't _have to_ help you or your brothers!

"Whether you like to hear this or not, we don't care about _any _of you boys," Blossom said, "and we _certainly _wouldn't care if you weren't around anymore to terrorize Townsville or try to _destroy_ us!"

Brick remained silent. He watched as Blossom gave him a final glare before pushing herself off the chair and going to Professor's lab, stomping her way there. Brick couldn't understand why her words got to him. _Could she be right_? He sat alone in the kitchen and stared at the table, mumbling something to him self, supposedly about _restraining_ himself from murdering Blossom by this point.

_We need their help...We need their help..._

Finding Buttercup was pretty easy. After they've eaten she immediately went to the couch and started up her video-game console, keeping her eyes glued to the television screen. Butch made a few loud coughs, trying to get his counterpart's attention, but to no avail. He groaned and made his way towards her.

"Hey _Butt-breath,_ let's go outside so I can pound ya!" Butch smirked. "Unless of course you're a little chicken that is_!_" He s made clucking sounds, trying to provoke Buttercup.

Buttercup kept her eyes on the game, barely paying attention to him. "_Can't... Playing... Street fighter... go away..._"

Butch glared at her. He then shrugged his shoulders and jumped on the couch, startling Buttercup and making her drop the controller. "_Then __make some room, __at least__!_" he said, grabbing another controller from the sofa.

"I'm _not _playing with you, Butch..." she said, restarting the game.

"Then I was right. You're just a little chicken, who's afraid to lose to me!"

Apparently Buttercup only really listened to him the second time, because this time she turned her head towards the Ruff with a killer's look on her face.

"NOBODY CALLS ME CHICKEN AND LIVES!"

"_WELL I JUST DID!_"

"_Y__OU'RE ON__!_" Buttercup screamed at the top of her lungs.

What followed next were almost thirty minutes of pushing, shoving and continuous taunting—with Buttercup commenting on Butch's bad hygiene and ugly hairdo, and Butch telling her how much of a _dork_ her father is—which Buttercup retaliated by calling his father a _cross-dressing_ crab who might not even _be_ his real father.

_HA! BEAT THAT!_

Meanwhile inside the Powerpuff girls' room, Bubbles was taking the news about the boys worse than everyone else. The second Boomer walked into the room, he was met with arms, pulling him into a deadly hug and squeezing him to the point that he couldn't breathe; however, telling Bubbles that she was suffocating him was useless since her cries over his shoulder were too loud.

"Oh Boomer, I'm so sorry!" Bubbles mumbled between her cries. "and I'm sorry for what Blossom made you do!"

"It's okay Bubbles..." Boomer whispered in her ear. Her tears were making his blue shirt wet. "Now calm down, okay? _Everything's going to be fine..._"

"But Boomer, what your father did was horrible!"

Pulling Bubbles away from his shoulder, he gave her a reassuring look. "Come on Bubbles," he said softly, "The Professor is going to help us...

"I _know_ he will," he finished.

Bubbles looked at him with her red and teary eyes and smiled before pulling him, once again, for an even tighter hug, which Boomer tried wiggling out of, unsuccessfully.

"Okay, okay that enough. I don't want your gross _cooties_ on me!" Boomer said jokingly, sticking his tongue out at her.

"Oh, so you think I'm _gross_, ha?" Bubble grabbed a soft pillow from her bed and smacked Boomer on the face with it. "Take that you _meanie_!" She giggled.

Boomer was surprised but then a smirk appeared on his face. "_Oh that's it..._

"You're going down, Bubbles!"

Boomer's hand pushed Bubbles onto the bed and he quickly pinned her down with his knees. Grabbing the pillow that she hit him with, Boomer smothered her face with it, hearing her muffled voice through the blue pillow. After a while of struggling, Boomer pulled the pillow away from her face only to reveal Bubbles giggling hysterically. Boomer joined in almost immediately.

"Listen Boomer I need to go ask the Professor something," Bubbles said, "Do you mind waiting for me_?_" Her eyes gleamed.

"Sure Bubbles." Boomer said. Something about Bubbles' voice made it_ very _difficult for Boomer to refuse anything she asked for.

Bubbles gave him a quick pack on the cheek, which, _surprisingly_, Boomer didn't seem to mind that much and simply turned red. As she made her way downstairs, she heard screaming, thrashing and pulling coming from the living room, and she rushed to see what it was. Drawing closer she saw two video-game controllers snapped in half and a cloud of fists and kicks rolling about on the floor.

_I'll show you who stinks around here!_

_Give it up you half-ape twit!_

Seeing Buttercup and her counterpart fight made Bubbles breathe out a deep sigh. She could never understand people who communicated _mostly_ by beating the snot out of each other. _Maybe that's how they bonded? _Continuing her search for the Professor, Bubbles decided to take a quick peak into the kitchen. Inside, however, she did not find the Professor, _but instead_, Brick leaning against the table with his eyes firmly fixed on it. Bubbles approached with caution.

"_Ahh... Brick?" S_he almost squeaked.

Brick glanced over at Bubbles and raised his eyebrow. "What?"

"_Have you seen the Professor around here?_" she said as innocently as possible.

"Your dad's in the lab with your sister..." Brick continued staring at the table. Making Bubbles stand there in total silence.

"Brick?"

She could tell that Brick wanted to be left alone, judging by the annoyed look he gave her. Bubbles knew, partially, what was making him this upset and felt like she had to say something—even though Brick wasn't the _friendliest_ type of person out there.

"_What?_"

"Um..." Bubbles stumbled, "I just wanted to say, that I think what Blossom made you do was very wrong and...

"I'm sorry that she humiliated you guys like that."

"Thanks..."

Bubbles stared blankly at the Rowdyruff boy, once again surrounded by total silence. She just stood there and blinked a few times before slowly making her way to the laboratory. A soft voice called her however, making her stop in her tracks.

"_Bubbles..._"

Bubbles turned her head towards Brick. She felt relieved that he finally broke the uncomfortable silence. "_What is it, Brick?_" she asked.

"Can I ask you something?" his voice sounded slightly raspy.

Bubbles nodded quietly.

"_Do you think __any__one would care if we were gone?_"

Bubbles looked at the red-headed boy with her mouth hanging open in shock. _Did Brick already g__i__ve up on himself?_ She recognized that desperate look on his face—she had already seen it when she followed Boomer into the forest and watched as he broke down in front of her. Snapping out of her thoughts, Bubbles answered.

"I would care..."

"_You_?!" Brick gave her a puzzled look. "_But why_? I mean, I know Boomer suddenly turned soft on you, but why would you care about us?"

Bubbles was relieved to hear that Brick knew about her and his brother. She didn't want to be the one responsible for another huge fight between Boomer and his brothers. "_Because I know that no matter how much you keep telling yourself..._

"You boys aren't really as evil as _you_ or _everyone _says."

"Rubbish..."

"Well I know that you and Butch couldn't be all that different from Boomer," Bubbles said, "_You are __brothers after all._" She smiled.

"So I would care if you boys were gone, and I'm sure my sisters would too, even if they don't show it." Bubbles said.

"Please don't stay too mad at us for what happened, _okay_?" she said softly.

Brick looked at the blonde puff with amazement in his eyes. How could she believe in him so much when _even_ he couldn't? How could she see anything good in him when there _clearly_ isn't anything? He felt as though Bubbles was deluding herself, but it truly shocked him how much she was willing to look past the murky history between them—he felt Bubbles' innocence slowly beginning to rubbing off on him.

"Hey Bubbles_?_" Brick said, his mouth twitching into a soft smile.

"_You're alright..._"

Bubbles gave Brick a cheerful smile. Brick watched as she waved goodbye to him before making her way to Professor's lab. His eyes were fixed on her until she disappeared out of his sight He seemed to have drifted into deep thought for a second before quietly chuckling to himself

_Guess I found out who the smartest Powerpuff REALLY is..._

As she approached the door to the laboratory downstairs, Bubbles overheard, what seemed to be, Blossom and the Professor talking to each other, and it sounded like they were arguing over something. Opening the door ajar, she tiptoed her way downstairs, where she heard snippets of the conversation.

"_...I__n any case, I__ would really reconsider helping the boys, Professor_"

"_But how do you know that we can trust Mojo's boys. After all, you've only had one encounter with them..._"

"_Trust me Professor. Besides these new boys didn't seem like they want__ed__ to cause to much trouble__—__better having them around rather than Him's boys._"

Bubbles could hardly believe her ears. _Was Blossom trying to convince the Professor not to help them? _While she knew that Blossom wanted to humiliate the boys for all the fights they've had with them, Bubbles never even imagined that she would want to get rid of them forever. _Could this be the reason why Brick asked her what he did? _Bubbles had to do something.

"_Blossom? Professor?_" Bubbles called out.

"_Bubbles,_" The Professor stopped tinkering with the microscope that he used to examine the boys' blood-samples and turned around. "What are you doing here?"

"Is something wrong, Bubbles?" Blossom asked.

"Blossom, I can't believe you would do something like this!" Bubbles cried out.

"_What do you mean?_"

"You want the Rowdyruff boys gone!"

"Well yes, but why do _you_ care if the Rowdyruff boys were no longer around?" Blossom said.

"_Especially_ when they're just a part of some bad guy's imagination..."

Bubbles had to confess; either that or she might never see the Rowdyruff boys or Boomer ever again. She could no longer hide it from anybody. Her only hope was that Blossom, along with the rest of her family, would understand her and won't judge her too harshly. Taking a deep breath, Bubbles spoke.

"Because I think that the boys aren't really bad..." Bubbles trembled.

"And _what _makes you think that, Bubbles?" Blossom crossed her arms.

The whole house could hear Blossom's yell. Butch and Buttercup froze in place, with his arm pulling her violently by the hair and Buttercup's fist deep in his jaw. Brick was pulled out of his thoughts immediately, as he watched Blossom storming out of the laboratory with Bubbles and the Professor staggering behind her.

"_WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU LIKE BOOMER!_"

"_I-I mean we're friends now,_" Bubbles stumbled.

"_Oh really?!_" Blossom's voice got louder and more bitter. "And for how long were you two '_friends_'?"

"_Almost a week..._" she whispered.

Blossom never felt so shocked by her sister before. Not only was Bubbles putting herself in grave danger for almost a week now, but she did it behind her sisters' backs as well. Blossom finally realized what her sister was doing while she and Buttercup were looking for her—_supposedly_ thinking she was kidnapped. Everyone in the room had their eyes fixed on Blossom, who's face color was starting to match the color of her bow.

"And when were you going to tell us, Bubbles?! When he _beats_ you up one day? When the boys_ actually _decide to kidnap you?!"

"Those boys are evil, and you can not trust any of them!"

Blossom was no longer restraining herself; she spoke as though she and Bubbles were the only ones in the room. "_Honestly Bubbles, you are one of the most irresponsible people I've—_

"_SHUT UP!"_

A dead silence fell on the room. Blossom stopped her rant and, along with everybody else, turned to Brick, who was glaring at the red-headed girl—he had just about enough of her for one day.

"You know what, Blossom? The more I stay here, the less _guilty_ I feel about trying to destroy you over and over again!

"I honestly don't know how Bubbles or heck, _even_ Buttercup can put up with you!" Brick said.

"I can now _safely_ say," Brick went on. "That I would rather be Him's _puppet_, and have that freak control me, than spend another second next to you!"

And with that, Brick swung the door open and disappeared into the night. Butch looked at the shocked expressions on the Professor's and the Powerpuff girls' faces before shrugging his shoulders and flying after his brother. Boomer murmured a soft '_bye'_ to everyone—which only Bubbles responded to—and flew off as well. The Utoniums were left standing motionless in the middle of the living room

...

**Part III - Epilogue **

...

Upon returning to their shack, the boys noticed something: _the place was a dump... _It only took one visit to the Powerpuff girls' home to show them what they're missing. The cracks on the floor became more apparent, the walls were practically _painted_ in dust and the place was so small that the boys could barely breathe inside. On the bright side, the muffled cries coming from inside the closet seemed to have died out—_which was a minor relief for the boys_.

"Man... those girls sure do have it easy," Butch scrapped a large cob-web off the wall.

"_I wish we had a place like that..._" Boomer muttered, keeping his eyes on the floor.

"At least we don't have to put up with that girl's whining," said Brick. "I _actually_ think I feel sorry for her sisters."

The boys felt their heavy eyelid pulling them down. The late hours of the night were finally starting to take their toll on them. They dragged their feet into their _modest_ room, or rather, the corner where their beds were aligned next to each other and took off their clothes—which they rarely, _if ever_, changed or cleaned.

"Well despite everything, it wasn't _that _bad," Brick said.

The next words uttered by his brothers would cause Boomer to lose any desire he had to go to sleep. He would be thinking about this _exact_ moment for the rest of the miserable night.

"And tomorrow's everything will go back to normal, and we can _kill_ those girls." Butch said.

Butch said it so casually that Boomer barely caught it, but he did. "_Wait, what are you talking about Butch?!"_

"_Yeah. Those girls will be sorry for ever messing with us!_" Brick added.

"Brick what are you saying?! We can't—

"Can't _what_, Boomer?" Brick asked, confused. "Come on dude, let's go to sleep already. I'm beat..." He let out another yawn.

_What the hell is going on here?! _

_..._

* * *

_..._

**_Hope you enjoyed._**

**_By the way, feel free to tell me if this was too long or too drawn out._**

**_I have a feeling I'm going a little overboard with trying to make my word-count bigger. :)_**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hi guys! **

**I'm back with another chapter.**

**BTW, You will notice that the chapter is told through Boomer's and Blossom's POV (Let me know if that works.)**

**Anyway, enjoy!**

* * *

**...**

**Boomer's Predicament (Boomer's POV)**

**...**

Boomer opened his eyes. The bed was as solid as a rock with springs sticking out of it—but he was already used to that; not like he could sleep anyway, since his brothers' words were still dangling in his mind. _Did t__hey say... kill the girls__?_ He must have been hearing things.

He put on his blue shirt and black jeans and slipped into his shoes. He swore he would never walk barefoot around the hut; last time that happened, he stepped on a rusty nail and hopped around for ten minutes, screaming in pain. _Wait? Where's Butch with his us__ual morning '__wake-up__'__ slap..._

It was too quiet...

_Maybe they're in the kitchen?_ He walked along the wooden floor which kept making annoying creaking sounds. He never liked the hut—it smelled funny.

Boomer peeked his head inside the kitchen. "Guys?"

His brothers were just standing there, frozen, with their backs turned to him. Boomer walked closer and closer, facing them. They looked like those 'mannequin' things standing inside shops, wearing clothes. He waved, snapped and called them—but nothing...

"Guys?!"

Brick stood frozen like he had seen a ghost. His eyes didn't blink even once and his face was as pale as a snowman. Same goes for Butch. Boomer was beginning to lose any hope of ever talking to his brothers again.

"Boomer..." Brick said in a voice that sent chills down Boomer's spine.

"Brick, are you okay?" Boomer took a few steps back.

Brick suddenly shook his head. He stared at Boomer with a confused look in his eyes. "Yeah dude... What's up?"

"Ahh... you just..." Boomer stumbled. _How was he going to explain to his brother, that, for a second there, they looked scarier than their dad?_

"You were acting weird..."

"Yeah? Well _you're _acting weird now!" Butch yanked the fridge door open.

The entire place started smelling of old socks and rotting fish. Even Butch wouldn't be brave enough to see what was deep inside that old fridge. Butch took out a can of red bull.

"Aghh, there's mold everywhere..." Butch wrinkled his nose and closed the door.

Boomer remembered how after Him brought them back, they went to stack up on food before fighting the girls. Butch drank every red bull in the store. Seeing him twitch like crazy for the entire day was, almost, too funny.

"So guys, what do you wanna do today?" Brick asked, sounding more relaxed then usual.

"Maybe we could go to the park?" Boomer suggested. He regretted it though after seeing the smirk on Butch's face.

Aww! Is that where _wittle _Boomie goes to make out with his girlfriend?" He then raised his voice. "_Oh Boomer, you're so dreamy! I just wanna cuddle you forever and ever!_"

He sounded nothing like Bubbles...

Butch fell on the floor and laughed at his own dumb joke. Boomer admitted that spending time with Bubbles made him softer than usual, but he still wanted to punch his brother in the face as hard as he could. _At least Brick wasn't laughing..._

"No, I was thinking of paying the girls a visit..." Brick said.

The smirk on his face made Boomer's heart skip a beat. Why would Brick want to visit the girls all of a sudden? Especially after the way that Blossom treated them.

"But Brick what about Bloss—?

"That's a great idea Brick!" Butch said, grinning. "I wanna beat them to a bloody pulp!"

_What?!_

"And I wanna hear them cry when we torture them!" Brick said.

The look on their faces made Boomer's body tremble. How could anybody even stretch their mouths that far? Their grins almost reached their ears. _Did Blossom get to them this much yesterday? _

"_Guys, are you crazy?!_"

"What's wrong Boomer?" Brick said, his eyes were as empty as before. "Don't you wanna have some _fun_?"

"Yeah Boomer? Don't you want to go '_play'_ with Bubbles?" Butch's smile was downright sadistic.

They came closer and closer. _What __the heck happened__ to them?!_ Boomer's hand fumbled for the handle of the door behind him. He swung the door open and dashed outside of the hut. He didn't wait for them to come out and soared into the sky.

* * *

"_Now what do I do?!_"

He needed to tell the girls everything! _NO!_ He needed to tell Bubbles! Her sisters—especially Blossom—were the last people Boomer wanted to see after yesterday. He flew as quickly as he could passing through: cafes, stores, the Mayor's place, and more cafes...

"Well, well, well, look who we have here!"

He stopped.

"Looks like _someone_ decided to make your job easier for you, Boomer!" Brick Jojo said.

Mojo's boys were right in front of him. Brick and Butch were giving him nasty smirks that were quite similar to his brothers'. His counterpart kept staring at the city below with a bored look on his face. _Why do these things keep happening to me?_

Boomer Jojo gave his brother a glare. "Yeah, yeah, whatever..."

"Wait guys!" Boomer backed away. "Please, I don't have time for this! I need to go tell the girls something really important..."

"Do we look like we care?" Butch Jojo snapped.

"Wait guys, maybe we should—" Boomer Jojo was cut off by Brick.

"Sorry, but were on schedule here," he said, "Now what are you waiting for Boomer?

"Finish him off!"

Boomer Jojo's eye twitched and he mumbled something under his breath. Boomer couldn't help but wonder if they treated their brother the same way _his_ brothers treated him— at least before he stood up to them.

"_Fine, Fine..._" Boomer Jojo let out a deep sigh.

The fight didn't start very promising. Boomer's counterpart kept waving his hands at him like he was trying to swat a fly off his face. Boomer didn't even need to block any of his attacks. The other two ruffs were sniggering behind their brother's back.

"Come on, hold still so I can knock you out already!" Boomer Jojo said, as if honestly expecting him to give up that easily.

Boomer found out that both of them had something in common—_well except almost everything_. Both of them didn't want to have this fight to begin with; his counterpart looked more angry at his brothers than at him—by the way he kept glaring at Brick.

Boomer dodged the last blow and kneed his counterpart in the jaw. "Ha! Take that!"

Boomer Jojo rubbed his chin and smiled. "Not bad. I didn't think you'd—_HEY AREN'T THOSE THE POWERPUFF GIRLS BEHIND YOU?!"_

"_Where?!"_

Boomer turned around. The girls were nowhere to be found; just a bunch of pigeons and a giant plane passing over him. _Hey a plane! ….Wait did he...?_

Boomer felt a sharp pain in his neck; it was like being hit with a baseball bat only ten times more painful. His body stared trembling, and he couldn't understand why he was seeing twice as many building as before. His eyes were slowly closing.

_Darn..._

**_..._**

**Conflicting Mind (Blossom's POV)**

**...**

"_Bubbles!_"

Blossom's been standing there for twenty minutes. Her sister locked herself in their room and won't come out. Even in school Bubbles ignored her or bolted off whenever she came near. She's been that way ever since the Rowdyruff boys visited them yesterday.

"Bubbles open this door!" Blossom pounded.

No answer.

"At least tell me what I can do to make you come out of there?"

Her sister's voice didn't come. Blossom kept waiting for anything to happen; her patience was running dry. A note came sliding through the hole underneath and Blossom picked it up.

Blossom looked at the note. "I'm not apologizing to them, Bubbles."

No answer.

Blossom let out a sigh. "Alright, if I apologize, THEN you'll come out?"

Another note slid through the hole. Blossom was getting tired of her sister's games but yanked the note from the floor. She read the note and a fiendish smirk spread all over her face.

"Alright, if me AND Buttercup apologize to the boys, then you'll come out of there?"

Blossom picked up the last note that Bubbles wrote her. The note had a 'yes' scribbled on it in a brightly blue color. Blossom chuckled, seeing a colorful rainbow arching over the word.

_But I'm only doing this for you..._

She climbed down the stairs to the living room. The TV was turned on, and Buttercup was sitting on the couch munching down on her popcorn.

"Good news Buttercup," Blossom said cheerfully, "You're coming with me to apologize to the boys!"

As Blossom expected, Buttercup almost choked on her popcorn.

"_Buf I wiwn't..._!" Buttercup gulped down her popcorn. "But I wasn't the one who made them beg yesterday!"

Blossom enjoyed seeing the look on her sister's face. Buttercup's been bugging her for the entire day, telling her how much she acted like a Rowdyruff boy yesterday. This was her chance to get even with her.

"Well I can't take the full blame for this, _can_ I?" Blossom said slyly.

"Yes you can! You're the _leader_! You're su—"

"..._And_ as your leader, I _expect_ you to do as I tell you," Blossom said in a harsh tone. "_Got it?_"

"_Yes your highness..._" Buttercup muttered.

"What was that, Buttercup?"

"Nothing, Nothing!" she said, trying to sound as innocent as she could.

Blossom made her way to the door and smirked to herself. _This is too easy..._

* * *

The girls were flying above Townsville. It was time for Blossom's daily city check-up: the kid crossed the street on a green light—_good_—that guy in the blue business-suit _paid_ for his bagel—_good_—the Amoeba boys stayed out of more trouble than they would _ever _care to admit—_good_...

"Hey Blossom, look who it is!" Buttercup pointed forward.

Blossom's eyes narrowed on the two blurs ahead of them. Brick and Butch were zooming in on them. She couldn't tell if the boys were angry about yesterday or they weren't. Though something looked odd about them.

"Aww shoot, I left my sorry card at home!" Buttercup pretended to dig in her pockets.

Blossom chuckled.

The boys finally stopped. Brick had a murderous glow in his eyes that caused Blossom to tremble slightly. _Why are they staring at us like that?_

"Boys are you okay?" Blossom asked. "You look kinda' pale..."

They kept staring with a nasty grin on their faces. Blossom was willing to bet her red bow that it had something to do with yesterday.

"Umm..." Blossom made some distance between her and Brick. "I-I just wanted to apologize for yesterday,

"And maybe I was a little harsh on you..."

No response.

"Hey, we're talking to you!" Buttercup yelled.

Brick almost had a hungry look in his eyes. Blossom's heart was beating faster and faster; her tongue was tied-up. They needed to get out of there.

Blossom turned around. "So... we'll just be going now..." She glanced over her sister. "Right Buttercup?"

An wrist came clutching on Blossom's arm. "_Leaving so soon?_" Brick said. His smirk was even more sinister than before.

"Yeah girls," Butch said, "We want you to stay for a while..."

The boys inched closer and closer to them. There was something almost alien about the way they kept looking at them; like a sick hunger surrounding their eyes.

"Okay you two enough joking around!" Blossom said, though her palms were sweating.

It happened too fast. Blossom felt her throat being squeezed and she gasped for air. Something was different about him. She couldn't put her finger on it. _Why couldn't she retaliate? What was stopping her from shaking Brick off? _Her life was fading away, when suddenly, the grip loosened.

"You stay away from my sister, you freak of nature!" Buttercup shoved him aside.

"Buttercup, look out!"

Butch wrapped his arms tightly behind her sister. Buttercup tried struggling out of it, but Butch seemed too strong for her. "_I wouldn't do that, if I were you._" He gave her a cruel smirk.

Blossom looked back at her counterpart. _Why couldn't she bring herself to fight him?_ Regardless, she wasn't going to let it stop her; whatever feelings she felt right now she had to put aside for this fight. _Her life was in danger!_

"Brick, I don't know what's gotten in to you," she said. "But this ends right now!"

"I know Blossom." Brick smirked.

He was too confident. Blossom had to be careful and not make any make any rash movements. There's no telling what he could do to her. He had that cocky smile on his face and his entire body was open to a good pummeling.

_Perfect!_

Blossom dashed forward. Her knuckle went into Brick's stomach. He flinched and grabbed his gut in pain. _That was too easy! _She soared into the sky and took a deep breath of air; a scorching flame swallowed Brick up. _Ha! Hope you like third-degree burns sucker!_

The smoke started to clear up, and Brick was nowhere to be found.

_Where did he go?!_

Blossom felt her spine bending like a question mark. She was suffocating from the pain. Brick whispered in her ear: "_It won't be long now, Blossom._" Her body came crashing down the cold pavement below, aching from the pain.

_Have to... get up... can't... lose..._

…

_..._

_..._

"_Blossom, __you awake?"_

...

...

...

Blossom's eyes twitched open. Her sister was standing besides her, and holding her hand was...

"Brick?"

Her face was almost too close to his. Brick Jojo was staring into her eyes, with a smile on his face. Not that stupid smirk that the other Brick had, but a _soft_ and _gentle_ smile. Blossom couldn't help but smile back—as hard as that was with her sore body.

"Hi..." she said, a small blush crept up on her cheeks.

"Are you okay? I thought you'd put up a better fight against him." He said jokingly.

How did Brick beat her so quickly? It was like he already knew that he was going to win without much effort. Something was making him and his brother more powerful than ever.

"What happened?" Blossom asked.

"You were knocked out," Butch Jojo said coldly. "You two would have been dog food if we hadn't arrived on time..."

"Don't flatter yourself!" Buttercup sneered. "We could have done it without your help."

Buttercup certainly had less luck than her. Her entire body had bruises on it, and her feet were trembling. Her voice sounded awfully weak as well. Blossom could only imagine what Butch did to her while she was out.

"Oh, so, I'm sure letting him bounce you around like a volleyball was part of your_ master_ plan?" Butch Jojo said.

"He just caught me off guard, that's all!" Buttercup said.

Blossom had to chuckle when she saw the twitch in her sister's eyes. This Butch definitely had a sharper tongue to him than the other Rowdyruff. She could imagine him getting on Buttercups nerves quite often.

"We managed to get them away from you, but they escaped before we could catch them." Brick Jojo said, frowning.

_That's odd. The boys wouldn't usually back down from a fight..._"

"But the good news..." Brick's mouth twisted into a mischievous grin similar to the other Brick.

"...is that we _did_ capture one of them."

_They captured Boomer?!_ Bubbles would not be the _least _bit happy if she found out. An angry Bubbles could be more dangerous than Buttercup at times.

"But why kidnap him?" Blossom asked.

"So we can take them out one-by-one!" Butch Jojo said, cracking his knuckles.

"Or get him to tell us where their father is," Brick added. "That way we can finish them... _indirectly_..."

Blossom, _herself_, wanted to convince the Professor not to help Him's boys _just_ yesterday. But something felt wrong. Something about the way the boys attacked them out of the blue just didn't seem normal to her. _It was something in Brick's eyes._

"Blossom, you okay?" Buttercup asked.

"_Oh yeah, I'm fine..." _Blossom snapped out of her thoughts.

Brick Jojo spoke after moment of silence. "Anyway girls, we better get going—we left the hostage with our brother—

"and Mojo..." Butch Jojo added.

"So, _as you can see_, he's probably not in the safest of hands..." The red-headed boy chuckled.

He gave the girls a swift salute, and the boys disappeared into the skies above.

Thoughts arose in Blossom's mind. Bubbles clearly wants Boomer to be safe, but what about her? Did she want any of Him's boys around Townsville? _Around them_? Blossom glanced at the sky one more time and, along with Buttercup, made her way home.

**...**

**Back Home (Blossom's POV)**

**...**

Blossom and her sister arrived home in an instant. She wonder if she should tell Bubbles that Boomer was kidnapped. This was their opportunity to get rid of those boys for good. Something kept telling her she was wrong.

"I wonder if she's still in her room," Buttercup said in a bitter tone.

The door to their room was, thankfully, open. They wouldn't have to wait for an hour until Bubbles decides to let them in—or for her to pass them notes through the door.

"Bubbles?" They peeked through the door.

"Oh hey girls..." Bubbles said, drawing on a piece of paper. "H-How did it go?"

It was clear as day that Bubbles felt guilty over what happened earlier. Or else she wouldn't have been trying to avoid looking at them, and _seeing_ that she and Buttercup were covered from-head-to-toe in bruises. Buttercup looked like she would collapse at any given moment.

"Bubbles... Please look at us..."

Bubbles lifted her head. The crayon in her hand dropped to the floor and rolled under the bed.

GIRLS WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?!

Blossom almost jumped at her sister's reaction but spoke. "We had a fight..."

"With who?" Bubbles' eyes darted from her to Buttercup.

"With those stupid Rowdyruff boys, that's _who_!" Buttercup jumped, after keeping remarkably quiet for all this time.

"What are you talking about, Buttercup?" Bubbles stared at her.

Judging by the piercing stare she gave her, Buttercup had something she wanted to tell to Bubbles for a long time now. And she was finally going to say it. "_WAKE UP BUBBLES!_

"You can lock yourself in this room and _ignore_ us for as long as you like,

"But don't expect us _FOR A SECOND_ to believe that these boys are anything but evil monsters!

Buttercup's face was glowing red. She was barely standing on her feet and was wobbling from side to side, but she still had enough strength in her to scream her lungs out.

"...WHO DESERVE EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED TO THEM!"

Buttercup's voice echoed through the entire house.

Blossom wanted to interfere. Bubbles stared desperately at her, wanting to hear a different answer. _But what proof did she have?_ Maybe Buttercup was right and the boys finally revealed their true faces to them? Maybe they could finally put an end to this.

"Blossom?" Bubbles said in what was barely a whisper.

"I-I agree with Buttercup..."

It was horrible. Bubbles' eyes were filling up with tears like two large swimming pools. Whatever words she had to say were buried in sniffs and sharp gasps for air. Blossom could almost hear her heart sinking to her feet. Bubbles rushed outside the room, holding her tears for as long as she could.

The front door slammed shut. The professor's voice was coming from the living room. Buttercup kept quiet with a scowl on her face.

_I'm sorry Bubbles..._

**_..._**

**_..._**

* * *

**_Hope you enjoyed and I would appreciate your honest reviews! :)_**

**Once again, thanks for reading!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hi, **

**Back with another chapter. **

**Always appreciate hearing your thoughts on the story, especially negative ones—**

**Hey I need to learn, don't I? :)**

* * *

...

**Part I - Inside Mojo's Lab**

...

How long was he asleep? Boomer's eyes twitched open and, immediately, a sharp pain shot for his head. He couldn't make out exactly where he was, but at least it smelled better than that dirty, old hut that his brothers decided to take over. The room was clearing up and various images began popping up right in front of Boomer; giant laser-guns? blueprints hanging on walls?_ A little ship in a bottle? _Either he was captured by a dangerous criminal-mastermind, hell-bent on taking over the world, _or_—_Oh wait, it's mojo's place..._

"_What the..._"He tried stretching his arm to rub his aching head, but he couldn't; in fact, he couldn't move his body at all. Boomer tried stretching, flailing his arms but nothing worked.

"_Hi..._"

Why did that voice sound familiar? Boomer regained his focus and realized what was stopping him from moving; his body was practically glued to a rock-hard surface in the middle of the room. Five metallic cuffs were locked around his arms, legs and neck. He couldn't even move himself enough to see who was calling him.

"Who the heck are you?" Boomer tried tilting his head to the side, but failed miserably. "And where are you?"

"Here." Boomer Jojo stepped in with a sheepish smile on his face.

"_W-What happened_?" Boomer felt as though something was drilling through his skull.

"I sorta' won the fight..." Boomer Jojo said.

Images of the fight flashed before Boomer's eyes. He clearly remembered falling for the oldest trick in the book, before he could—**___Bubbles! _**

Boomer desperately tried squeezing himself out of the metal cuffs, but they were too tight. "Listen, you've got to let me out of here,

"_Please!_"

Boomer Jojo's gaze immediately dropped to the floor. "Sorry I can't..." he said, "Mojo's the only one who knows how to work this thing.

"He said it's some '_special enhanced metal-thing_', so you can't break it either."

Boomer let out a deep breath of air. He glanced over the laboratory and something quickly caught his attention. Weapons and weird gadgets scattered all over the floor—some were big enough to have their own room, while others could fit inside a mouse-hole.

"What's all this stuff?"

"Oh..." Boomer Jojo rolled his eyes. "Mojo told me to use any of that stuff if you tried to escape or something."

"But you don't **_need_** any of that stuff to stop me..."

"Yeah well... Mojo's a monkey" His counterpart shrugged.

Both of them laughed. Or in Boomer's case, a mixture of laughing and moaning from his grueling headache, from which he still hadn't recovered after their fight. A few seconds later, Boomer Jojo snapped his fingers like he remembered something important.

"_Hey I almost forgot!_" He dug in his pockets, looking for something. However before he could pull that something out, the door to the lab spread apart and Brick Jojo marched inside along with his black-haired brother—he had a deadly serious look on his face too.

"_Boomer status report!_" he barked.

Boomer Jojo groaned to himself before speaking. "_The hostage is terrified by your mere presence, **my lordship**!_" he said in a tone of fake-admiration. "In fact, he's probably cursing the day he was born as we speak!"

Boomer had to stop himself from laughing.

"Good." Brick Jojo said with a satisfied look on his face; clearly not noticing the sarcasm in his brother's voice.

Butch Jojo locked his eyes firmly on Boomer. They would occasionally slide higher or lower, but were always fixed on him. As he walked up to him he muttered: "_Don't try anything..._" with his eyes narrowing into a glare—not that Boomer could do anything while cuffed to a wall like that.

"Now as for you," Brick Jojo said, turning his gaze toward Boomer. "Your brothers attacked the Powerpuff girls today."

Boomer's eyes widened.

"___Are they okay?_" he blurted out, and for some strange reason, his counterpart snickered at him. _Did I say something funny?_

Brick Jojo eyed his suspiciously._ "_Well if you must know,_" _he said_, "_we stopped your brothers before they could cause some serious damage to the girls._"_

_Brick Jojo's glare dropped to the floor. "Unfortunately, they escaped before we could do anything else."_

_Boomer felt as though a huge weight had been lifted__ off his paralyzed shoulders; though he still couldn't exactly keep himself from being tense. He hoped Bubbles was alright._

"I would't be too happy if I were you,"_ Brick Jojo said, crossing his arms._

_"Yeah!" Butch's mouth twisted into a vicious grin. "You weren't as lucky as they were."_

"Now listen to me '_Boomer_'..." Brick Jojo made his way towards Boomer; his steps thumped at a steady and determined pace.

"I'll make you a deal."

"You tell us where your father is..." He inched closer; his face was nearly touching Boomer's and his eyes were no less intimidating. "And we will _consider_ letting you go unharmed.

Seeing Butch Jojo crack his knuckles and smirking at him, made Boomer wish he knew where his father lived. But whenever Him wanted something from him and his brothers, he would use his fancy, red smoke to make them appear in his dark and fiery lair. A question kept pounding in his head: _why did they want to know?_ Though Butch's twisted grin was making it pretty clear.

"You do know what this means though, right?" Brick's eyes narrowed.

Boomer squeezed his eyes shut, preparing himself for, probably, the worst minutes of his life. But seconds later, he realized that what he really needed were his hands free, since Brick's yell made Boomer wish he could cover his ears.

"_MOJO GET OVER HERE_!"

His voice echoed through the entire lab and right after that, complete silence fell on the lab. Then a door swung open and a blinding white steam rushed out of it. Boomer couldn't tell why, but as soon as the steam cleared up everybody in the room began laughing hysterically.

"_Hey Mojo where do you keep the camera_?" Brick Jojo said, biting down on his hat, not letting his laughter escape. "I'll only need one shot!" though eventually falling on the floor with tears spraying out of his eyes.

"_Yeah and I'll frame it_!" Butch wasn't even trying to hold himself; his face turned a dark shade of red.

"Ha, ha very funny..." Mojo muttered.

Boomer tried tilting his head to the side, but the cold cuff clenched tightly around his neck. Even his counterpart was pounding his fists on the floor. Boomer, however didn't need to move, since the second Mojo came into view, he swelled up like a balloon.

"What do _you_ want?" Mojo glared at the red-headed boy.

Mojo couldn't look dumber even if he tried. He was wrapped from top-to-bottom in a pink bath-robe with little yellow flowers drawn all over it. His enormous brain was covered with a plain-looking towel and large bits of shaving cream dangled off his hairy chin.

"S-Sorry Mojo" Brick Jojo wiped off his last tear. "We need your help w—

"Excuse me Brick but may I just say..." Mojo cut him off.

Everybody in the room knew what was going to happen next. Brick Jojo let out a deep breath of air and braced himself for one of Mojo's many tedious speeches. Butch, meanwhile, dug inside his pockets and fished out a pair of tiny earplugs; he stuck them inside his ears and smiled coolly

"_HOW DARE YOU INTERRUPT MOJO-JOJO DURING HIS MOST INTIMATE AND SACRED MOMENT!"_

Mojo's spit sprayed in all directions.

"_WHICH, MIGHT I ADD, REQUIRES UTTER AND COMPLETE CONCENTRATION ON MY PART!_"

"_I only hope he's talking about shaving..._" Brick Jojo muttered to himself through a scowl.

_AND FOR THE MORE...!_

It went on forever; Mojo's face turned purple and more bloated with every word he spat out. Brick Jojo covered his mouth with his hands, so Mojo wouldn't notice that he was trying hard not to laugh at the clueless monkey. Butch kept nodding his head, pretending to listen with his eyes still closed and his smile more casual than usual. Boomer Jojo struggled to keep his eyes open, trying not to fall asleep.

IN CONCLUSION, THAT IS TO SAY, I AM AT THE PEAK OF SHORT AND CONCISE RANT...

**_Short?!_**

_I AM EXTREMELY DISPLEASED WITH YOUR, SO FAR, FUTILE ATTEMPTS TO DESTROY THOSE ACCURSED POWERPUFF GIRLS!_

Once Mojo's mouth stopped moving, Butch Jojo finally removed the earplugs out of his ears and smirked, "_Hey dad, I didn't quite catch that; could you repeat w—" _Brick elbowed him in the gut before he could finish. "_Don't even think about it,"_ Brick Jojo muttered to his brother.

"_Anyway_ Mojo we need that '_secret_' weapon you were talking about." Brick Jojo said.

"One moment please..." Mojo said, before strolling away to get something, whistling to himself as he went along; it only took _three _words before he actually went this time too—_or was it four..._

Mojo's whistling and footsteps were getting harder to hear with each passing second. Boomer heard a bunch of books being shuffled and tossed aside before Mojo yelled out a very enthusiastic: "A_ha!" _and a loud thud came from the other side of the lab. Everybody in the room—except Boomer—stared with gaping eyes where Mojo went—Butch Jojo seemed especially thrilled.

"_Whoa Mojo! You've got an underground lair inside this place?!_"

_Wha...Where?! _

"Yes boys," Mojo marched back to where everyone stood; A very satisfied grin appeared on his face, and his hands were kept firmly behind his back. "This is where I keep my most valued possessions and inventions!"

"_Does that include the giant stuffed monkey you go to bed with?_" Boomer Jojo asked, innocently.

"_WHAT HOW DID YOU_—_" _Mojo's face turned red. "I don't know what you're talking about..."

_What could Mojo have in there that he didn't have here? _Boomer fixed his eyes on the giant bomb that took up almost the entire space in the room; it looked worn out and covered in spider-webs. The rests of the stuff lying around were either brand new or rusty and covered in spider webs.

"Regardless, that is where I keep the device that would render this boy helpless!" Mojo pointed at Boomer, his gloved finger poking through the cuffed boy's cheek. "Thus allowing you boys to proceed with your plan of annihilating Him's boys!

_"**AND THE POWERPUFF GIRLS EVENTUALLY!**" _he barked, nearly propelling himself several feet into the air.

Boomer gulped.

"_Yeah, Yeah whatever..._" Butch sneered, "But why can't we just use this?" Butch Jojo snatched a small, fairly new-looking ray-gun off the floor. It had a long vessel sticking out of it with black gooey stuff inside; there was a giant '**X**' printed on the handle, and the black liquid kept bubbling inside.

"Because _stupid," _Brick Jojo said, "He's not made of _chemical X_ like us. Him made them in his mind, remember?"

"Oh yeah!" Butch Jojo tossed the ray-gun aside; his blond brother had to side-step so that it doesn't hit him in the face.

"As I was saying," Mojo continued. "I will retrieve the device for you, so you may continue with your pla—

"_Don't mind if I do!_" Butch Jojo didn't let Mojo finish and launched himself inside the underground lair. Everybody in the room had a dumbfounded look on their face, and Brick Jojo let out a deep breath of air.

_"I better come with you Mojo_," Brick Jojo said with a tired look on his face. "Butch can get a little _too_ trigger-happy sometimes."

"_Thanks..._" Mojo muttered, his face had gone pale.

Brick Jojo turned to his brother. "_Boomer keep your eyes on him._" his eyes trailed off toward the cuffed Rowdyruff.

"_Yes Brick..._" Boomer Jojo said, with a scowl on his face.

Mojo led the leader of the Rowdyruff boys into the lair. Judging by Butch's hysterical laughter echoing inside and the black smoke that came rushing out of the lair, the place wasn't going to last for too long. Mojo kept cursing to himself as they marched away. "_Stupid, good for nothing, slimy..." _

When the coast was clear, Boomer Jojo let his shoulders sink. "_Boomer status report!" _He said with mocking tone., "_keep your eyes on him, Boomer!_" He stuck his tongue out in disgust.

Boomer watched him, confused.

"_You don't like your brothers_?" he asked, wondering if his brothers mistreated him as well.

Boomer Jojo quickly turned around; he must have forgotten that Boomer was bound up right next to him. "What—no, it's not that..."

"_It's just_...

"After we found out about you guys, my brothers took it as a serious insult to their name..." His eyes dropped to the floor. "Now they've gone berserk and want you dead..."

Boomer went pale. It took him this much to finally realize in what kind of trouble he was in; the air around him suddenly became thick and hard to swallow, and he felt like his heart would burst out of his chest at any moment. _Would he ever see his brothers again?_ _What about Bubbles? What if she gets hurt? _So many thoughts went through his mind that he barely noticed his counterpart's hand on his shoulder.

"Hey," Boomer Jojo smiled warmly at him. "I know what's on your mind, right now."

"I doubt it..." Boomer said coldly.

"Trust me," Boomer Jojo gave him a reassuring wink."Now come on, we need to get you out of here!"

Boomer Jojo staggered towards the pile of gadgets scattered across the room. His head swayed from left to right as he tried to decide which tool of destruction he should be using first—everything either looked too old or not powerful enough. He turned back to his counterpart. "_Now what__?_"

"I don't know," Boomer said, "Try anything, I guess..."

Boomer Jojo dug inside the piles of junk on the floor. "Let's try cutting the cuffs off!" He was holding a pair of shears nearly twice his size. He cheerfully snapped the monstrous shears right in front of Boomer's face.

Boomer gulped. "I don't think so..."

He tossed the gigantic shears back into the pile and plunged into another one. However before he could return with another deadly weapon that would, no doubt, kill Boomer before actually saving him, a voice came from inside the underground lair.

"_Okay Butch, here's the stupid device. Now leave!_" Mojo's voice came booming from inside the lair.

"_But I'm not done yet..._"

"**_YES YOU ARE!_**" Brick and Mojo's voices came out simultaneously.

The two Boomers shared a worried look between each other. Boomer Jojo's eyes dashed back-and-forth, and he quickly jumped back into another pile. Within seconds he emerged with a pathetic laser-gun in his hand, but he had a confidant smile on his face. "_Found it!_" he called out.

"Are you sure this'll work?" Boomer's heart jumped.

His counterpart's smile began to fade away. "Nope...

"_...but I have a feeling!"_

Boomer's heart sank back to his feet again. He stared at his counterpart with a stunned expression on his face. If there was ever a time, when Boomer wanted to choke his counterpart to death, it was right now.

_Great... _

"Don't worry, I won't miss the cuffs," Boomer Jojo said, pointing the gun. "Promise..."

Boomer held his breath as his counterpart aimed Mojo's device at him. He squinted one of his eyes and aimed the gun, which wobbled in his hand, at one of the metallic cuffs—or at least he thought he was aiming there. For some reason Boomer's life began flashing right before his eyes._ Oh well, it was fun..._

"_Ready?_"

"No..." Boomer said, his voice shaking.

There was a loud bang and the laser-gun fired. Boomer couldn't feel his cuffs breaking and opened his eyes. They immediately widened as a green beam of light kept bouncing from wall-to-wall until eventually the was a loud boom. Boomer Jojo tilted his head where the explosion went off, and his face broke off into a nervous smile; his face began sweating a little.

"What happened?" Boomer asked. "Where'd it go?"

"Uhh, I don't think you want to know..." Boomer Jojo said through his teeth.

"Ahh... okay..."

"_I hope Mojo won't mind that I blew up his bathroom..._"

Boomer watched as a small stream of water began leaking onto the white marble floor, barely missing his feet. He raised his eyebrow at his embarrassed counterpart, but quickly abandoned the subject. "What now?"

"I don't— "

"_Come on Butch let's go already,_" Brick Jojo's tired voice came out of the lair. "You can play with Mojo's toys later."

"Fine..."

Boomer and his counterpart began sweating. The Rowdyruffs' footsteps were getting louder, and, without thinking, Boomer Jojo launched himself into another pile, trying out everything he could lay his hands on. He even flung a sharp and deadly combat knife at Boomer, barely missing his face.

"It's no use!" Boomer Jojo panicked. "There's too much junk here!"

The footsteps kept getting louder and louder. Boomer let out a breath of despair, thinking how horrible this day turned out; his brothers turned insane and want Bubbles and her sisters dead, his captors wanted him dead, and he could no longer feel his arms and legs.

Boomer stared at the puddles of water that were now surrounding the lab. Something caught his attention, as he looked at the reflection in one of them. _"Ahh, Boomer?"_ he said.

"_No, this one's too rusty..._" Boomer Jojo tossed away an old rocket-launcher. "_What?_?"

"Does your TV have only one channel or something?"

"No," Boomer Jojo threw away more useless junk. "We got tons," He said, satisfied. "Mojo has his own satellite...

"Why?"

"Then why does your TV remote has only one button on it..."

His counterpart froze in place. He looked at the small table between the television and the couch, and slapped his forehead so hard that he nearly knocked himself out cold. A shiny, new remote was lying perfectly still on the table, which had only one big red button on it.

Boomer Jojo shook his head. "_Mojo you're an idiot..._"'

He yanked the remote off the table and pushed the red button. The cuffs clicked and spread apart, so Boomer could finally get out; he stretched himself; shaking his arms and legs. "_Yippee_! _I can move again!_"

His counterpart kept staring wide-eyed at the remote control. "_Unbelievable..._"

After having enough time to appreciate his newly found freedom, Boomer walked up to his counter part and gently tugged on his shoulder.

"Ahh, Boomer?"

"Yeah?" he snapped out of his thoughts, and threw the remote into one of the piles, turning his attention to Boomer.

"Thanks for helping me." Boomer said,

"No problem," his counterpart smiled. "I'm sorry about my brothers being... ya know..."

"Hey before I forget!" Boomer Jojo dug in his pockets. "This is your—

Before he could take something out of his pocket, Brick Jojo's voice came. "_Boomer, you okay in __there__?_" His feet were already showing outside the entrance of the underground lair.

Boomer Jojo pulled his hands out of his pockets. "_Never mind that now! GO GO GO!_"

Boomer's eyes dashed from side-to-side, not knowing what to do. However as Mojo's boys came into view, he immediately made his way towards the door that led outside the volcano observatory. He shut the door behind him, and leaned against it, letting out a breath of relief. _What did he want to give me?_

...

**Part II - The Power of Regret**

...

Boomer stepped outside Mojo's laboratory, and the sun greeted him, sinking fast into the sea. _Was he too late? _He spent all this time being tied up and interrogated by Mojo's boys—enough time for his brothers to attack the girls again. Bubbles could be already injured by now, or even worse... _No, no she's okay..._

He raised into the air, looking at the city below him. "I just hope her sisters are in a better mood than last time."

Boomer kept passing buildings at a snail pace. A little voice in his head screamed at him: "_You're so stupid! Why did you let them capture you!_" and he had trouble ignoring it. What if something already _did_ happen?

_Maybe she's... _

He made his way towards the city park, landing somewhere in middle of it all. Kids his age were tossing frisbees at each other, and the grown-ups were talking and holding each others hands, sitting on blankets they've spread on the grass. Boomer's eyes desperately swayed from one side to another—_but no Bubbles..._

He let out a heavy breath of air. "_Come on Boomer, she's okay..._"

He soared into the sky and flew to the girls house, even slower than before. Boomer was entering the outskirts of Townsville, nearing the house of the Utoniums. Oddly, non of the lights in the house were on yet—_then again it's not that late yet..._

He landed on the ground in front of the house. "_Well... here goes._"

Boomer walked up to the door. "_All you have to do is knock._" His hand inched closer and closer to the door, to the point that he could feel it with his fingers. He breathed deeply, and his heart hammered in his chest.

_Come on Boomer..._

Boomer felt as though his hand was still cuffed to the wall at Mojo's laboratory. _What if he's too late?_ He needed to make sure that she's alright, but he couldn't. He pulled his hand away from the door; it was shaking uncontrollably.

"_I need to get out of here..._" he said, his voice trembling.

Boomer squeezed his eyes shut and darted away. He didn't need to see where he was going; he'd been there so many times by now. The roaring and honking of the speeding cars were beginning to fade away, and were instead replaced by the sounds of animals calling and birds chirping; the trees were swaying along with the wind.

"_Stupid..._"

Boomer stepped on the dry leaves and gazed at the forest around him.

He made himself comfortable on a batch of dry leaves and cold ground; his eyelids were dropping. _Maybe everything will go back to normal after he wakes up?_ His brothers would go back to being just plain jerks instead of ruthless psychopaths; Bubbles would panic after he'd tell her what happened to him today, but would return to her usual cheerful self in an instant.

He yawned a final time, before drifting off.

Before he could fall asleep, however, Boomer caught a glimpse of a shadow darting pass him. It was coming from the sky. He rose to his feet, having the sudden urge to see who it was. He soared into the air.

"Hello?"

Boomer squinted his eyes. There was something in front of him, and he began to pick up on what that something was. His heart did a double somersault in his chest, and an enormous grin appeared on his face.

"Bubbles!"

Bubbles turned around, but to his surprise, she didn't spring forward to greet him; in fact, she didn't look like she was happy to see him at all. Boomer made the first step and hastily approached her.

"Bubbles, you're okay!" He extended his arms to hug her, but she backed away. Bubbles was glaring at him.

"Ahh—are you okay?" he asked, almost too surprised.

"No!" Bubbles said with a furious voice that didn't quite fit her. "_Why did you attack my sisters today?!_" she had a scowl on her face. Her eyes pierced through Boomer like daggers.

"No wait!" Boomer inched closer, but Bubbles kept moving away. "I can explain..."

Bubbles couldn't keep her tough act for too long. Her scowl was softening up and her mouth began wobbling. Her bright blue eyes were filling up with tears; Bubbles squeezed them shut, letting some of the tears escape. "_Boomer... why?"_

"I-I know that Blossom wasn't being nice to you yesterday, but we just wanted to help you..." Bubbles covered her eyes with hands, trying to stop the tears from running down her face.

"_I wanted to help you..." _

Boomer couldn't bear to look anymore. _Who was he kidding?_ He couldn't explain why his brothers were acting the way they were; he had no idea. Even seeing Bubbles standing next to him, unharmed didn't make him feel any better. Her crying made his heart pop like a balloon after a needle went through it. He was just one step away from losing Bubbles and her trust in him.

"_Bubbles, please don't..._" He inched closer.

He definitely wasn't thinking about what he did next. Boomer found a way through her hands, and carefully locked his lips onto hers, wrapping his cold arms around her. A flaming warmth spread throughout his entire body, and Bubbles' sobs were fading away. It wasn't like anything he ever felt before; her skin was so soft and warm that he felt like he was melting just from her touch. After what seemed like an eternity, Boomer pulled away. Bubbles wasn't crying anymore.

"_B-Boomer..._" Bubbles said, frozen, with her mouth open wide.

Then, this happened...

"_I—I—I... __um..._"

Boomer finally realized what he did; his face mirrored Bubbles'. He felt a burning sensation in his cheeks and his palms began sweating profusely. Any word that sounded good in his head came out as jumbled nonsense out of his mouth.

"I'm—I'm—I'm..." He felt his heart ticking. Time seemed to have slowed down to a crawl, and Bubbles gawking at him wasn't helping much either. Boomer finally swallowed the thick brick of air that was suffocating him and managed to find some words.

"_S-S-Sorry gotta go!_"

Boomer launched into the air, not daring to turn around. He passed through a bundle of trees, but didn't really know where he was heading. Though the sounds of cars roaring and people chattering were beginning to return. Soon enough, he landed on a sidewalk in the middle of the city. His legs barely holding him. He needed to find a wall to lean against, so he doesn't collapse from the shock and lack of air.

"_What just happened?!_" he said, desperately gasping for air.

After spending some time trying, without success, to realize what made him do what he did Boomer pushed himself off the wall. He stumbled on his feet, walking nowhere in particular. His mind was so busy that he didn't notice the people he bumped into, the lamp posts that he knocked his head on, or the car that steered out of control and into a tree because of him.

_Did I just?—no—no—no, it was nothing! Everything's fine, __Boomer!_

The only time Boomer stopped in his track was when a sudden thought hit him: _Where was he gonna sleep? _He couldn't go back to the hut, his brothers probably won't be too happy to see him.

_This day couldn't possibly get any worse..._

His body kept shivering from the cold and his teeth kept clicking, so he shoved his hands inside his pockets. His eyes immediately widened. _No! Where is it?! _He dug deeper in his pockets and pulled them out. _Nothing! _He searched everywhere. He must have dropped it while fighting his counterpart today. Boomer's gaze fell to the floor, and his shoulders sank.

_Guess it can get worse..._

* * *

**_A/N: Hmm... Well I'm not really satisfied with this chapter, but I needed it to keep the story moving. :-/_**

**_Next one's moving along pretty smoothly though...so... yay?_**


	11. Chapter 11

...

_**Part I – Him's Punishment **_

...

The boys stood before their father. Brick and Butch stared emptily into open space; their bodies frozen in place, and even the echoing screams that came from inside the lair, or the lava that erupted out of the fiery river around them weren't enough to squeeze even the tiniest emotion out of them. Him fixed his yellow glowing eyes on them as though he was staring deeply into their souls.

"So boys, did you finish your task?"

"No father," Brick said.

"And why _not_?" Him's eyes narrowed into yellow slits.

"Mojo's boys sir," Butch said, transfixed. "They ambushed us before we—"

"_Do you think I don't know that?!_" Him's demonic voice echoed through the entire lair. His teeth clenched together. "I've seen your pathetic fight with them!"

"_How much longer are you miserable brats going to keep disappointing me!__"_

Despite Him's bloodcurdling yell, the boys didn't move an inch, though their hearts beat faster with each second. The demons mouth twisted into a penetrating grin.

"Now..." Him inched closer to the boys. "How can I_ personally _motivate you Boys to try a little harder, hmm?"

Him reached his claw for Butch's cheek, piercing through it like butter, leaving a thick scar.

"Maybe, I'll make you feel an insufferable pain like you've never felt before," Him said, grinning. "which could only be diminished by your desire to destroy the Powerpuff girls..."

Him hurled his arm towards Brick's neck—his razor-sharp claws digging through Brick's flesh, making him gasp quietly for air. Blood gushed out of the fresh wound as Him pressed harder, dissolving into steam as it hit the scorching floor.

"Or maybe I'll end your brother's life?" Him fixed his eyes on Brick. "I'm sure you and, _sweet, little_ _Bubbles_ are going to miss him very much,

"_Won't you_?" Him loosen his grip, making Brick fall to his knees and cough with a sharp pain in his throat.

The boys didn't respond, which only caused the demon's grin to grow even wider in size. Him knelt down to their level and leaned closer to Brick's ear. "_I know you're out there..._

"_You can feel every little scratc__h and__ hear my every single word..._"

Him lifted Brick's chin so that their eyes would meet. "And I know that you don't want any of these things to happen—even if you don't show it."

Suddenly Him let out a shriek of excitement. "Ooh I can only imagine your faces when you regain control over your bodies!"

His eyes narrowed again.

"_IF__ you regain control over your bodies..._"

Him's patience was running dry. He slithered past them like a venomous snake, examining them like an animal before attacking its pray. The boys' faces were pale gray. Blood kept dripping out of Brick's wound before dissolving into thin air as it touched the ground.

"Now before you go," Him snapped his claws inches from Butch's face. "I would like to make sure that I've made my self _clear enough _for you."

Him's teeth showed through his sadistic smile.

"I suggest you don't fight it," Him said.

_and it'll be over before you know it..._

Though the two boys remained quiet so far, even they couldn't stop the agonizing screams that escaped out of their mouths. Him's laughter was heard throughout the entire lair, as the sounds of sizzling burns and cracking bones followed. Time slowed down to an agonizing crawl.

...

_**Part II – The (blue) Calm before the Storm**_

...

It surprised Boomer when he woke up, that he not only managed to sleep through the night on a cold bench with nothing but a thin, ragged blanket covering his shivering body, but that he managed to sleep through most of the morning as well.

"Look at that kid there," an adult voice pierced through his ears. "That's one of them Rowdyruff boys, ain't it?"

As he opened his heavy eyes, Boomer noticed people glaring at him and giving him funny looks, which he didn't like one bit. He picked himself off the bench, and, with his shoulders hanging low, walked away from the patronizing townies.

_Jerks..._

Boomer's mind kept going back and forth, trying to recollect yesterday's events. Even_ thinking _about Bubbles suddenly made his head spin and his body shake—how was he ever going to see her face-to-face again?

"_Stupid girls!_" he said, kicking an empty can of soda, which rolled forward until it touched the walls of a pink building. He lifted his eyes off the ground and, to his surprise, he was standing near Pokey Oak's Kindergarten.

"Hey, it's Bubbles' school!" he said, turning red at the mention of her name.

Boomer sneaked towards the window and carefully peaked inside. The room was filled with kids, some yawning and looking at the clock on the wall, while others kept their eyes on the enthusiastic grown-up, writing complicated numbers on a green board.

"Now kids," the brunette woman called, "who can tell me how much is five subtracted from twenty?"

Silence fell on the room. Everyone kept exchanging weird mumbles between each other, and only Blossom's hand kept hanging in the air, ready to detach itself from her body.

"I know the answer Ms. Keane!" Blossom waved her hand, leaning closer and closer to the teacher. Some of the other kids were glaring at her.

"Blossom please," Ms. Keane said tiredly, "I would like the other students to participate as well."

Blossom let out a sigh. "Fine..."

"Now..." Ms. Keane said, her eyes gliding from one terrified student to another. "Bubbles!"

Boomer pressed his face against the window when he heard her name, his eyes catching Bubbles sitting besides her sisters. He smiled in a way that would probably land him a painful slap from Butch.

Bubbles lifted her head up from the piece of paper she was scribbling on, her cheeks turning red. "I'm sorry Ms. Keane, but I wasn't paying attention..."

"Is anything wrong Bubbles?" Ms. Keane asked in a worried tone.

"No Miss—

"Bubbles has a boyfriend!" shouted a freckled kid with brown tousled hair. Boomer nearly lost his balance, holding onto the window with all his might, so he doesn't fall to the ground. _Did anybody see them yesterday?_

"I do not!" Bubbles yelled out, before returning to scribble on the piece of paper, faster than before and with a red blush all over her face.

"Now Mitch, it isn't polite to say these kind of things to someone," Miss Keane said, waving her disapproving finger at him, "Especially if it isn't true,

"You could end up hurting the person very deeply."

Boomer watched as Bubbles sank down to her chair with an embarrassed look on her face, still flushing dark-red. He fixed his glaring eyes on Mitch, feeling the blood rushing in his veins, and his nails digging deeply into his palm.

"_So Bubbles was I right?_" Mitch asked with a stupid grin on his face. "_It's a boyfriend, isn't it?_"

_At least nobody saw him..._

"Now, who else can tell me the answer?" Ms. Keane continued.

Surprisingly, Blossom no longer had her hand raised in the air. Instead she was looking over her sister with a sorry look in her eyes.

Just then, the bell rang.

Boomer hid himself in a nearby bush, away from the eyes of the scurrying kids, thumping along the grass and screaming at the top of their lungs. School seemed like a pretty boring place to be in—his brothers would probably blow it up by the end of their first day.

"_What's taking Bubbles so long?_" he muttered, trying to stop the branches from scratching him from top to bottom.

He was about to clamber up the window again when suddenly Bubbles came out through the doorway along with her sisters. Boomer pressed himself against the building, sticking his ear out.

"Bubbles are you okay?" Blossom asked Bubbles, who had a gloomy look on her face. "You've been really quiet today."

"Yeah Bubbles," Buttercup said, "even _I _was paying more attention to Ms. Keane,

"and that's only because I'm one strike away from detention..."

"I'm fine girls..." Bubbles said, mustering up a weak smile.

Blossom placed her hand on her sister's shoulder. "Listen Bubbles, I know that you're still upset about what happened yesterday...

"But it _did_ happen, and the boys _did _attack us."

Bubbles' gaze dropped to the ground.

"_Believe me_ Bubbles, despite the differences between us, I would have helped them," Blossom went on, "I even told the Professor to finish making the needed chemical..."

Boomer's heart jumped, and he let out a yelp. He immediately regretted it once he saw the girls glancing over where he was, covering his mouth with his hands.

"_But Bubbles,_" Blossom said, "_they're not making this any easier for us..._"

Boomer felt his heart sinking to his feet. If only his brothers didn't act the way they did, maybe, there was a chance that they could escape from their dad forever—_even _Blossom was willing help them.

"We'll be going now Bubbles," said her red-headed sister. "If you want to stay here for a while, then fine, but don't stay too long, okay?"

"Okay Blossom..."

Boomer watched as her sisters gave Bubbles one final look before flying off home, leaving her behind.

Boomer's whole body began shaking. _How was he going to approach her?_ He took a deep breath and, without thinking, started walking towards Bubbles in slow, sluggish steps. She kept looking tiredly at the grass, not noticing him.

"B-Bubbles?"

Bubbles jumped and a light blush spread across her cheeks. Her smile was too wide for words.

"Boomer!" she said through a soft giggle. "W-Were you standing there for a long time?"

Boomer instinctively reached for his neck with his shivering hand, also letting out a quick giggle. "No, I- I just heard the bell ring and wanted to see what was g-going on..."

"Well, right now it means that we can go home..." Her blush grew darker, now making Boomer uncomfortable.

"**OH!**" he yelled out, probably more enthusiastically than needed; his hand still fiddled with his blond hair. "T-That's great!"

"Yeah..."

After a moment of painful silence, interrupted by the occasional awkward laugh, Boomer realized that he was standing _a little_ too close to Bubbles. Feeling his face burning up, he let out a yelp and quickly turned around, struggling for air.

"_B__-B__ubbles?_" he said, fixing his eyes on the damp grass, which seemed to calm him down a bit.

"Yes B-Boomer?"

"Y-You don't think that I attacked your sisters, do you?" He peeked over his shoulder, only to see Bubbles standing with her back to him as well.

"No."

Boomer was surprised by how quickly Bubbles answered that question. He turned around and blinked a few times. "Really?"

"Well your brothers did," she turned as well. "But not you..."

"And why not?" Boomer huffed. "I _was _evil once you know..."

Bubbles giggled, trying her best to hide it.

Boomer's eyes widened. "_I WAS!_" his said in a tougher voice.

Bubbles' soft laugh went even higher in pitch. "I'm sorry, but it's so cute when you try acting all big and tough in front of me."

"I'm not trying to act tough!" He shot back, though he could feel his face turning redder by the second.

"_I __am tough__!_"

"Okay _Boomie_, I believe you..."

"_AND DON'T CALL ME THAT!_"

"Besides," Boomer growled, "I could beat both you _AND _your sisters if I wanted to!"

This was too much for Bubbles. Her face had swollen up and she buried it in her hands, both to hide the tears in her eyes and to hold the laughter that escaped from her mouth. Boomer's eye twitched violently. _Why did she have to make him feel bad about himself?_

"Okay that's it!" He said, dashing forward and knocking Bubbles gently on the grass—with her still giggling hysterically.

"I'm gonna show you just how evil I am!" He said before pinning Bubbles down with his knees, giving her an evil grin.

Bubbles gulped.

Before she knew it, Bubbles was gasping for air as Boomer ran his fingers through her ribs, tickling her. She tried talking her way out of the situation, but Boomer couldn't really make out any words through her hysterical giggling. Her face was beginning to match the color of her dress.

"_Now who's evil, Bubbles?_"

"D-Don't!" Bubbles yelled through the bouts of laughter. The tears that she had collected laughing at Boomer were pouring out of her eyes like a fountain. "Please!"

"Sorry Bubbles, but I'm not done yet!" His grin spread so wide that Bubbles looked legitimately scared. He began taking off her shoes, making Bubbles panic.

"No Boomer please!" Bubbles shook her head."You're evil, you're evil!"

"It won't hurt _too_ much, I promise!" he said, removing her other shoe, still pinning Bubbles down to the ground. He then ran his fingers through her feet, making her face turn purple, as she tried squeezing herself out of his hold.

"Come on Boomer s-stop!" she said, holding onto the grass with her dear life. "I give up—I give up!"

Boomer took a final delighted look at Bubbles; he could only imagine how she would have reacted if she wasn't wearing the white stockings on her legs. Finally Boomer lay himself on the grass, gazing at the calm sky above.

"Boomer?"

"Aha..."

"Where were you when your brothers attacked?"

Boomer felt his heart flipping in his chest. He clambered back up to his feet and looked at Bubbles, once again nervously feeling his neck.

"I—uh—was kidnapped..."

Bubbles' eyes widened, and she picked herself up from the ground as well. The look that she gave Boomer did nothing to make him feel any easier. "What?"

"Well—_Mojo's boys_ sorta' came and—" Before he could finish the sentence, Bubbles already had her arms around him, squeezing the life out of him. Boomer could feel her heart pounding in her chest.

"_Boom__ie__ are you okay?_" Bubbles' voice rang in his ears.

Boomer's body flamed up the longer Bubbles prolonged the deadly hug. He felt like he was going to pass out any second now—especially with her face so close to his'.

"_Bubbles, I'm f-fine..._" Boomer said in an agonizing whisper. "_Please let go of me..._"

Thankfully, Bubbles let go before he could collapse in her arms.

"_You weren't hurt, wer__e__ you?_" Her eyes gleamed, scanning for even the tiniest injury.

"I'm fine Bubbles," Boomer smiled. "The other Boomer did—

"Wait..." Boomer stopped, picking up a strange smell. "Do you smell that Bubbles?"

"Yeah, it's smoke..." she said, coughing.

"_Bubbles look!_"

Ambulances and firetrucks came rushing through the corner of the street with their loud sirens turned on. Along with them were crowds of scattering people, panicking and screaming for their dear lives as they ran for the nearest buildings.

"What do you think happened?" Boomer asked Bubbles.

"I don't know Boomer," Bubbles' eyes followed the scattering crowd. "Let's go ask them!"

Stopping people in their tracks wasn't easy—most of them were either too busy running towards a safe building or were too tongue-tied to talk to them. Only a round, wrinkled lady pulling her weight along with a walking stick was able to assist them.

"Excuse me, ma'am," Bubbles asked politely, "Why is everybody running away?"

The lady stopped dead in her tracks. Her wrinkled hand reached the backside of her head, and she smiled a toothless smile at Bubbles.

"Why hello _sweetie_," she said joyfully. "It's so nice to see you on such a lovely day!"

Bubbles exchanged a confused look with Boomer before speaking. "Did you need our help, ma'am?"

The old lady blinked a few times, and reached for her chin as though trying to remember something. "Well let's see...

"I need to pick up my grandson from school...

"Make mushroom soup for tomorrow...

"Feed Mr. Whiskers—oh mustn't forget to do that...

"Hey lady!" Boomer said, losing his patience. "Can you tell us what everybody is running away from or not?!"

The old lady fixed the glasses that dangled off her long nose and squinted at Boomer. Her eyes nearly popped out of her wrinkled sockets.

"You!" She yelled, lifting her shaking arm and swinging her old cane in Boomer's face. "Keep your dirty paws away from this sweet, little girl, you monster!"

"_Hey, __w__hat'd I do?__!_" Boomer said, dodging the deadly wooden stick that she kept aiming for his head. "Stay away from me you crazy, old lady—_OUCH__!_

"Ma'am can you_ please_ tell me what happened?" Bubbles tugged at the woman's ragged clothes before she could clobber Boomer to death—all while trying to stay as polite as possible.

"Those little hoodlums are causing trouble around city hall!" She pointed her long, bony finger in Boomer's face. "Him and his brothers!"

"One of them had long, awfully messy red hair with long ends sticking out from each side like there's no tomorrow!—

….not like the old days when kids kept their hair neat and short—!"

Though Boomer and Bubbles didn't need any more explanations, the old lady continued rambling on—her toothless mouth shaking with every word

"The other one's a particularly violent type—kept attacking anything he could lay his vicious green eyes on, _that hooligan_!—

"...Used to be a time when people respected the law around here!"

The old lady shuffled away, still mumbling under her breath about the old times. The two fixed each other with a worried look.

"I don't get it!" Bubbles said, "Why are your brothers doing this?"

"I don't know Bubbles," Boomer replied. "They've been acting that way ever since we came to your house—they said they want you and your sisters dead—

Bubbles eyes grew wider.

"I mean they don't like you girls or anything, but we'd _never_ go this far," he stopped for a moment. "Well at least Brick wouldn't—

"Butch _pretty much_ wants your sister dead for as long as I can remember him," Boomer muttered. "At least that's what he says..."

Bubbles clasped her hands to her mouth, as though the horrifying realization just hit her. "Come on Boomer, we need to go see what's going on!"

Bubbles lifted herself into the air, but before she could, Boomer pulled her back down,with his hand clenching onto her arm. His eyes sunk to the ground and a red glow spread across his face.

"What is it _Boomie_?"

"Bubbles..." Boomer gulped down a mouthful of air. "Do you really think I'm not tough like my brothers?"

Bubbles sank back to her feet, giving Boomer a smile that always made him feel better. "Boomer...

"I think that you are _just_ as tough as your brothers..." She said, smiling. "just like I can be as tough and strong as my sisters."

Boomer smiled faintly.

"But you don't _**need**_ to prove to me that you're tough," she went on with a gleam in her eyes. "Because that's not what matters to me..."

Boomer lifted his head, fixing his eyes on Bubbles.

"What matters to me is that you're funny..."

Boomer couldn't help but chuckling through a weak smile.

"What matters to me is that you can understand me better than anyone else can."

Boomer felt a blush creeping onto his face.

"What matters to me is that can show your true feelings," She inched closer, putting her hand on Boomer's shoulder. "even if it's not always easy for you..."

An unusual warmth spread throughout his body, as it weakened with her every word. Boomer's smile was slowly fading away.

"But over the last week you _**did**_ show me those feelings, and you showed me who you really are," she said. "and you know what I think?"

Boomer was silent.

"I think you are the _sweetest_, most _caring_ boy I've ever met."

Boomer's heart was practically melting in his chest, and his cheeks felt scorching hot. He wished he could turn away to hide it, but he couldn't move.

"So maybe you're not as tough as your brothers," Bubbles said, "And I know that it hurts to remind yourself about it...

"But believe me Boomer," she finished, "There's a lot more to you than your strength, and your brothers don't realize just how lucky they are to have you."

That did it.

"Now come on, we bett—"

Before she could finish, Boomer inched forward, pulling her in for a warm and tight embrace; feeling the warmth of her skin, Boomer placed his head on her shoulder and, leaning closer, whispered a delicate: "_Thank you_" in her ear. He pulled away and smiled. With a blush on both faces, they soared into the sky.

"_Wait, __what __about the smartest?_"

"_Well..._"

"_Kidding!_"

...

_**Part III – Blossom's Realization**_

...

The past couple of days were troubling Blossom. No matter how much she tried convincing herself that this was how the boys usually acted, the last fight kept spinning inside her head. She lied on her bed, fixing her gaze on the ceiling. Buttercup had her usual scowl on her face.

"I don't know Buttercup," she said, "They're usually jerks, but there was something different about them this time."

Buttercup huffed.

"And what about Bubbles?" she went on, "She genuinely likes Boomer, I mean, you saw how upset she was today..."

"Oh please Blossom," Buttercup sneered, "You know how easy it is to toy with her. For all we know it's part of their plan to get rid of us!"

"_Well they're sure as hell taking their time then!_" Blossom sat on the bed, glaring at her sister.

"Face it Buttercup, it isn't like them!"

"Neither is attacking us with the intention of killing us!"

"Hello!" Buttercup yelled out, "What do you think they've been doing all this time? _Playing house with us?!_"

Blossom rolled her eyes. "Oh sure, they've beaten us to a bloody pulp a few times," she said, "and _sure_, they're hell bent on embarrassing us and making our day miserable...

"but they've never been so ruthlessly determined to end our lives before..."

Buttercup huffed again, still not convinced. "So what do you think it is then?"

Blossom collapsed head-first onto the bouncy bed, once again staring at the ceiling. "I don't know Buttercup..."

"A dog can only bark for so long before he starts to bite, Blossom..." Buttercup said, crossing her arms.

"Hell, you said you wanted them out of the picture when they came to our house just two days ago!"

"_So what changed?__?_"

"It just doesn't make sense..." Blossom struggled to find a comfortable spot on the mattress. "Why would they attack us if they _know_ that we're, probably, their only hope for survival!"

Moments of complete silence followed, only to be interrupted by the door swinging wide open. The Professor stood before the girls, ashen-faced and drenched in sweat. Blossom immediately jumped off the bed.

"Professor what happened?!" Blossom approached the alarmed Professor.

"Girls, you have got to see what's on the news!" he said, before disappearing out of sight, his footsteps thumping along the stairs.

The girls shrugged to each other and made their way to the living room. The TV was turned on, and as they drew closer, their mouth nearly dropped to the floor.

"Tom, I'm standing just a few feet away from where the attack happened," said a stern-looking reporter. "And as you can see, people are evacuating the area as we speak."

Buildings either caught fire or crumbled to the ground. People were scurrying away in large groups, screaming, terror-struck. The girls barely recognized the city hall, which was now engulfed in flames.

"The attackers were identified as the infamous Rowdyruff boys," the reporter went on. "Previously known to have been involved in cases of vandalism, physical assault and theft among other offenses."

The camera zoomed in as close as it could on the boys. Butch was firing deadly beams left and right at the scattering people, managing to hit some of them. Brick, meanwhile, kept diving from the sky, setting more buildings on fire.

_No..._

The reporter went on, _"It is still largely __undetermined__ whether-"_ There was a loud bang and the TV went static. He must have been hit by one of the blasts...

Blossom's heart pounded in her chest. She felt her face heating up, as she curled up her hands into firm fists. "_Buttercup, let's go..._" she muttered through clenched teeth,

"We've got some _**pests**_ to take care of..."

Buttercup fixed her wide eyes on her sister, frightened by what she was seeing. "_Blossom, j__-j__ust stay calm oka-_

"_I SAID LET GO!"_

Feeling her whole body shaking, Blossom did not wait for her sister to answer and burst through the ceiling of their house. She flew, not looking where she was going, blinded by her anger—Buttercup soon caught up, not daring to speak.

As they left the outskirts of Townsville, the girls were greeted to a dark fog surrounding the air of the city. Buildings were left in ruins and trees burned away into ashes. They drew closer and closer into the city until finally stopping.

"_WHERE ARE YOU__!_"

Blossom's voice echoed through the abandoned streets, her eyes furiously searching for the boys.

"_You think this is funny?!_"

Her voice grew louder.

"You think you can just do whatever you want, and return to that precious little shack of yours—!

"_LIKE IT'S NOTHING__!__!_"

Blossom's palms were shaking, still enclosed in tight fists. Her sharp breathing made it hard for her to concentrate on anything, and there was nothing she could do to control herself.

Blossom gritted her teeth, and, squeezing her eyes shut, yelling as loud as she could. "_Come out here, you freaks!"_

And so they did. What Blossom saw next made her heart drop down to her feet. "_B-Boys..._"

Brick and Butch were shuffling towards them—their shirts torn and covered in their own blood—their bodies scorched and wounded—Brick's left eye was blackened, and blood was dripping out of a fresh cut on his throat—his hat barely dangling on its final threads.

Their eyes were as hollow and lifeless as before.

"Boys..." Blossom felt all the anger draining out; her voice barely came out of her mouth. _"W__hat __happened to you?"_

"Powerpuff girls..." Brick said, inching closer and closer towards Blossom.

Blossom fixed her shivering stare on Brick. _Those eye__s__..._Blossom felt the air becoming thicker, and a rush of heat was spreading across her face.

_Brick,__" _Blossom stared deeply into his eyes_. _"_Who __d__id this to you...?_

As Brick's bruised hands reached for her neck, Blossom's body suddenly stopped listening to her. _How __did she not notice it before__? _There wasn't any anger found in his eyes at all, neither were they empty and lifeless like she had thought...

"_This isn't you..._"

She could see the emotions in his eyes—the one's that Brick was always so good at hiding from everybody. It almost felt like he was trying to reach out to her, begging for her help—_just __like __back home..._

"_This isn't you, __Brick..._"

"It's no use Blossom_..._" said an all too familiar voice that sent a bone-numbing chill down Blossom's spine.

"_You see. The boys are more loyal to me than even **THEY** would ever care to admit..._"

...

...


End file.
